With the Aid of a Genie or Two
by Monker
Summary: Love is never easy. But when you happen to be in love with a Queen, love can seem impossible. Full Summary inside. C&J, of course.
1. a Game of Tag

**Title**: With the Aid of a Genie or Two

**Author**: Monker

**Rating**: PG

**Disclaimer**: The Princess Diaries movies and characters belong to Disney and Meg Cabot. All events that take place in the film are not of my own creating. The story however, and its additional characters are my own. If you would like to use one of my original characters then I would be glad to let you do so if you ask my permission first.

**Genre**: Romance/General/Humor

**Summary**: C&J fic. This takes place in-between the movies; Mia is about seventeen or eighteen. This is a little story that came to mind during my watching of Aladdin. Joe tells of his feelings for Clarisse during a card game, Mia andCharlotte agree to help him win her over.

**Some thing you should know**: The card game 'Tag' that they play in this chapter is one that none of you have heard of, that is because I invented it and play it with my friends. It's a fun little card game for two or more players. You needed to know that because I didn't want you thinking that this whole chapter was taking place while the characters were all running around trying to tag each other.

**Something else you should know**: There is no book called Another Grape on the Vine (at least not that I know of), so don't think that I am commenting on a real book when Joe says what he thinks of it. If there really is a book titled Another Grape on the Vine…I truly had no idea.

Ok…

Deep breath in…Deep breath out…Here we go.

* * *

Joseph sat in the fairly dark room as he quietly read the book in his hands. He cherished these moments for they were few and far between. They were the moments when he was unbothered by his Head of Security position at the palace. During these moments, one could usually find him in his room, picking out some lovely song on his classical guitar, or in the library nuzzled up by the warm fire with a good book in hand, like he was now.

With the exception of the fire crackling and every now and then the sound of Joseph's fingers turning the page, the room was completely silent. The silence, however, was soon disrupted when the door to the library burst open, allowing two very noisy women to enter.

The two ladies flipped on the lights and walked over to a nearby table, still chatting and giggling, obviously completely ignorant to the fact that they were not alone.

Joe turned his head to see who the intruders were. He immediately recognized them both and stood to greet them, taking his book with him.

Finally, one of the women noticed his presence. "Oh hey, Joe. Were you there the whole time?"

"Yes, Your Highness. I often come here to enjoy some peace and quiet, as well as a good book," Joe replied taking a step forward.

"Oh, well…how is that going?" Mia asked.

"Not so good. This…" Joe said waving the book lightly in the air, "was not the good book I had hoped it to be. Besides…the peace and quiet was recently ruined."

"Oh…sorry, Joe," Mia said sincerely.

"Yeah, we didn't mean to be a bother. I just had some time off and Mia suggested that we should maybe play a game of cards,"Charlotteadded.

"What book were you reading anyway?" asked Mia.

Joe looked at the book he was holding and cocked an eyebrow. "It's called Another Grape on the Vine. On the back it promised to be 'a suspense thriller for the ages'…though in my opinion, it should have come with a separate label that read 'Warning: Incredibly boring! Prepare yourself for slumber.'" Joe stated as he threw the book on a nearby seat and joined in the soft chuckles coming from the two ladies in front of him. "What were you planning on playing?" he asked walking towards the table.

"We hadn't decided yet."Charlottesaid through her soft laughter.

"How about a round ofTexasHold 'Em?" Joe teased.

"I don't know how to play." Mia stated.

Charlotteagreed. "Neither do I," she said with a light shake of her head.

Joe gave an evil little chuckle as he took a seat. "Precisely my point," he smiled wryly.

"Oh, Joe!" Mia said as she playfully slapped his shoulder.

"I don't think the queen would approve,"Charlottenoted.

"Ah, you're probably right on that one," Joe nodded. "Fine then, any other suggestions?"

"How about a game of tag?" Mia suggested. The others agreed to this and after a quick dealing of the cards, the game began.

It was Mia who mentioned that it was going to get boring if they were merely sitting there playing the card game. She recommended that they all go around taking turns saying some random fact about themselves that the other two wouldn't already know. "I'll go first," she said, laying down a card, "I have never been on a roller coaster."

"Oh, neither have I!"Charlotteexclaimed. "I don't think I would ever want to."

"You don't like roller coasters?" Joseph asked, also laying down his card.

"I'm scared to death of them!"Charlotteresponded, slapping her card on the table.

"But you've never ridden one. How can you know if you've never tried it?" He asked.

"I just know."

"So you would never ride one, even if you had the chance?" Joe pushed.

She simply shook her head at him.

"Not even if I went on it with you?" He continued with a smile.

Charlotteagain shook her head. "Thanks for the offer Joe, but I don't think so. I value my life."

Mia laughed, "Ok Joe, your turn," she said as she laid down her card.

"Ahh…let's see…I've never carved a pumpkin," he stated.

"What?" Mia asked, confused.

"You know how people carve pumpkins for Halloween? I never have." Joseph explained as he played a card.

Mia laughed, "Oh! I thought you meant that you've never carved a pumpkin out of like a block of ice or something."

Joe also laughed, "Well, that too."

"Ok Charlotte, your turn," Mia said.

Charlottelaid down her card and looked upward to think. "Umm…I've never owned a pet."

Mia gasped, "What?"

"It's true, I remember my father had some fish in an aquarium at his office, but other than that…my family never had any pets."

"That's horrible," Mia said with a hand over her heart.

"Not really. I mean…we wanted a pet for a while. But we eventually learned to deal without it."

"I am _very_ sorry," Mia said as she placed a hand onCharlotte's shoulder.

Charlottelaughed. "It's ok Princess, really. It's not like I was traumatized forever."

"I would have been! I can't imagine life without Fat Louie."

"I had a dog growing up." Joe stated, "A husky. His name was Solado. I grew up with that dog. I got him for my seventh birthday and he died right before I went off to college. He was the greatest dog I ever knew, and the smartest, too. He didn't need a leash. You could take him wherever you needed to go and he would stay right by your side the whole time. That was a good thing because growing up as a boy, you would spend more time walking than you would anything else. It was a fairly small town and I was usually sent to get things from different stores for my mother. I could take Solado with me into all the stores because most of the storeowners knewJacksonwell enough to know that he wouldn't cause any trouble. He was a good dog," Joe finished with a nod.

"Oh, that's so sweet," Mia said with a smile. Then slappingCharlotteon the arm she said, "See what your parents made you miss out on?"

Charlottesmiled, "I guess so. He sounds like a good friend."

"He was," Joe confirmed with a nod.

"How did he die?"

"He was an old dog. He had been worn down through the years. But I don't think he had any regrets."

"Neither do I,"Charlottesaid with a smile.

"Well I guess it's my turn then," said Mia as she watched Joe place his card on the table. "Let's see…I once tried out for Junior Jeopardy when I was fourteen, but didn't make it."

"I didn't now they made you try out to be on those shows,"Charlottesaid as she laid down a card then redirected her attention back on Mia.

"Charlotte, you can't put a nine on a seven," Mia chided, picking up the newly placed card and showing it to the woman to her right.

"Oh, my mistake. It looked like a ten from here,"Charlotteapologized and took the card back, replacing it with another.

"Yeah, well anyway. They just give you a sheet of really hard random questions and you have to fill it out. But I never made it on the show," Mia finished.

"Pity," Joe said as he laid his card down. "My turn then? Ok…I have never been much of a fan of 'Aladdin'."

"The movie?"Charlotteasked.

Joseph nodded, "Mhmm."

"I love that movie!" Mia stated as she made her move.

"I never cared for it," Joe said with a shrug of the shoulders.

"Why didn't you like it Joe?"Charlotteasked.

"I don't know. I guess the story line just never appealed to me."

Mia chuckled, "What Joe, royalty falling in love with a commoner is too hard for you to believe? …Or maybe it was that that concept hit a little too close to home for you," She said with a smug smile.

Joseph tilted his head slightly with a puzzled expression towards the Princess asCharlottegasped at the blatant comment.

"Mia!"Charlotteexclaimed with a shocked expression.

Joe held up his hand toCharlotte, now fully intrigued by what Mia had to say. "What were you meaning to imply by that, Princess?"

"Nothing!"Charlottesaid quickly.

"No, no, now I'd like to know," Joe said as he stared at Mia.

"Oh you know…" Mia began, hiking her shoulders and shuffling her cards around in her hand, "the whole palace knows about it."

"About what?" Joe inquired, practically daring Mia to say what she was thinking. He tried to seem like he hadn't the least idea what she was talking about.

"About the thing you and Grandma have going," Mia finally stated.

His expression changed, instead of merely one eyebrow being raised, both were now in their top position. He had suspected that's what the princess was hinting towards, but he didn't think she would actually say it. "I beg your pardon?" he asked once his mouth found words again.

"We've all seen it, haven't weCharlotte?"

Joseph turned his head to seeCharlottewith her face in her hands and elbows on the table, refusing to make eye contact.

"Seen what?" Joe couldn't help but ask, turning back towards Mia.

"Oh, you know," Mia began with a little smile, "…how you gently place your hand on her back as you guide her through a crowd. How you two share looks when you think no one is watching. How you guys will touch each other's hands for like…three seconds too long. You can't tell me you haven't noticed that we've noticed."

Shocked, Joseph turned his gaze to look at Charlotteagain. "Do _you_ know what she's talking about?"

Charlottetook a deep breath and then brought her head up from her hands. "Yeah Joe, I kind of do," she admitted.

Joe scoffed and struggled to form a coherent response. "What are you trying to imply here?"

"Do you have a thing for Grandma or not?" Mia asked straight out.

Joe leaned back in his chair and looked at both women in front of him with an open mouth. "I-I don't think…I mean really…I…" he watched as they returned his gaze expectantly. He finally said, "I have known Her Majesty for many, _many_ years. She's an extraordinary woman."

"We know that Joe,"Charlottesaid softly. "We want to know if you have any other feelings for her other than that you would have towards an employer and friend and…monarch."

He shifted uncomfortably in his seat and looked at the table. For the first time since they had sat down, no cards were being played. Everything was still as they all awaited his answer. He finally looked back up at the both of them and realized that he was _not_ going to win this battle. He gave in. Joseph sighed, a long, defeated sort of sigh. He looked back and forth between the two women before him. Finally, he leaned in towards the center of the table and spoke.

"Everything spoken here is within strict confidence, is it not?"

Charlotte and Mia both leaned in towards the center of the table and nodded their heads.

"You're wanting to know if I have feelings for Her Majesty?"

They, again, nodded.

Joseph sighed once more and looked at the cards below him, "I suppose" he said, "…that may…be a possibility."

He saw the grins spread across the faces of the two people in front of him. He could tell that it had pleased them immensely to hear those words from his own mouth.

"I knew it!" Mia exclaimed as she sat happily back in her seat.

"But neither of you may say a _word_ about this to anyone!" Joe said firmly as he too sat back in his seat.

"But why? Why don't you want to tell the world?" Mia asked.

"Because the world can't know, Princess…. No one can know."

"But why not?"

"Because those are the kind of feelings that men like me can't have towards women like her."

"But if you love her, then she needs to know,"Charlottesaid.

Joseph looked at her, "There's no need for her to know because I have no intention of pursuing her."

"Why not!" Mia asked angrily.

"Because, Princess, there is no way I could possibly win her over!"

"Aladdin did!" Mia said back.

"Yes, but that was with the aid of a genie, which you can see, I'm running a bit short on. And let's not forget that was merely a movie to begin with," Joe said quickly.

"We could help,"Charlottesuggested.

"Yeah, Joe! We could be your genies!" Mia said with a smile.

Joe once again looked back and forth between the both of them, debating their offer.

"Come on Joe," saidCharlottequietly. "What's the worse that could happen?"

He looked hard at her, "…She could say no."

* * *

There you go. That's the first chapter. Please tell me what you think. I would love to know what aspects you liked and didn't like.

PLEASE REVIEW!


	2. a Certain CD

I am pleased to hear that you guys are enjoying this story of mine. Thanks so much for the feedback

**Something you should know:** I'm not proud! I'll admit it! I really didn't know what to write here in this chapter. I was at my whit's end trying to come up with a good enough storyline to use for a chapter. I finally admitted as much to RevSue in a fan fiction message and she (kindly) helped me with several wonderful ideas. So I give RevSue the full recognition she deserves. It was her idea…I merely wrote the chapter. So thank you RevSue.

Deep breath in…Deep breath out…Here we go.

* * *

Charlotteentered the Queen's office with yet _another_ stack of envelopes. "Good news," she said, "this is the last of them for today."Charlotte gently set the mail on her Majesty's desk.

Clarisse removed her glasses and rubbed the bridge of her nose, "Oh, thank goodness."

Charlottegave the woman sitting at the desk a sympathetic smile. Any fantasies one may have ever had of ruling a country would quickly go down the drain if they knew just how _much_ a monarch had to do. Simply a look at the daily mail would have done it forCharlotte. She was amazed that this woman could do all of the work there was to be done and still walk out of it with her usual calm and pulled together façade that she wore on a daily basis. Joseph was definitely right when he said that she was an 'extraordinary woman'.

"Perhaps you could use some tea, Your Majesty?"Charlotteoffered politely.

"Oh, that would be wonderful. Thank you, Charlotte," Clarisse said as she reapplied her glasses, picked up her pen, and again turned her eyes to the mail in front of her.

"Yes Your Majesty, I'll have that for you in a moment,"Charlottesaid as she bowed away from the desk and headed towards the door.

"And perhaps some music would be nice as well," Clarisse added before her assistant was completely out of sight.

* * *

Charlottepoured through the palace's selection of music. _' Where is it?'_ She wondered as she skimmed through the songs on the back of various CD's in front of her. This was interesting. She had never personally looked through the palace's CD's. Normally she just asked one of the maids to put on some music, but this time she was looking for a certain song in particular to play in the Queen's office. She found a few CD's that she was personally interested in and made a mental note to ask if she could borrow them later.

"Ahaa!"Charlottesaid triumphantly as she held the CD up and looked at it. If she had remembered correctly, it was this CD that contained the song that she had witnessed the Queen and Joseph dancing to inSan Francisco. And after the conversation she and Mia had had with Joe last night…well…maybe this could help.

Charlotteplaced the CD in the CD player and pressed play.

* * *

"Here's your tea, Your Majesty,"Charlottesaid as she placed the tray on the desk.

"Thank you, Charlotte," Clarisse said. She set down her pen and took a sip from the warm liquid. "Charlotte…" she began, setting the cup down and rubbing her sore hand (her hands often cramped when writing this much) "…have I heard this song before? It sounds familiar." Clarisse listened closely to the song that played over the large speakers hanging delicately from her office ceiling.

Charlottepretended to listen closely to the song as well. "I don't know…I would assume so. The CD _was_ among the palace's selections. I believe you would have heard it at some point."

"Oh, well, I suppose you're right," Clarisse said with a sigh. "Anyway, back to work I suppose. I'll think of it eventually." She once again picked up her pen and began to write once more.

Charlottenodded and exited the room.

Time went by and it continued to nag at Clarisse's mind. Where had she heard that song? It was driving her out of her mind trying to remember. The CD was on a repeat mode so she got to hear it more than once. It was beautiful. The song was slow and for some reason, seemed to be very…what was the word…seductive? …No that wasn't it…intimate perhaps? Yes, that was the word…intimate. The song seemed to be very intimate in Clarisse's mind for some unknown reason. She thought back to all the times she might have listened to this song. She couldn't remember it at all! It was driving her MAD! Where had she heard that song? She didn't know. All she knew was that when she heard that song; she felt the need to dance…slowly. When she heard that song, she could imagine dancing smoothly across the ballroom floor…with a flawless partner. She could imagine dancing in her partner's arms and feeling sense of safety…a sense of security.

SECURITY! Of course! That's where she had heard that song before! It was while she was in America. Her Head of Security had been kind enough to offer her a dance that she (unknowingly) needed quite desperately. Of course, that was just Joseph's personality. He always knew when she needed a lift…even when she would do her best to hide it. She held her friendship with Joseph very close to her heart. She could count on him and depend on him. Their friendship was one full of honesty and trust. Clarisse knew that anyone who had the chance of having a friendship as strong as Joseph's would be simply _mad_ if they did not treasure it the way she did. Even the smallest of gestures could do a world of good... for example…a dance. She smiled as she remembered…

"_It's coming along. NOW you may go home,"_ _Clarisse said to her granddaughter as she began to gather a few papers. The past fifteen minutes were spent watching her granddaughter be taught how to dance (well) by Joseph. It was a difficult (and perhaps painful on Joseph's part) process but eventually…she got it…or at least began to grasp it._

"_THANK YOU!" Mia said as she practically leapt towards to door._

_Clarisse remembered thanking her Head of Security before seeing his black sleeve reach across her line of vision to turn the CD player back on. _

_"You've been wearing black…too long." He had said as took her hand and led her to the center of the dance floor and began leading her in a slow, memorable dance._

_Thinking back on it…it was a rather odd comment coming from a man who wore ONLY black and NOTHING else. But she understood the meaning behind the words and accepted his offer graciously._

_Together they danced, slowly and without error. She couldn't remember how long the dance had lasted, but the length didn't matter. What mattered was that she was in mourning and he recognized that, and made an effort to put an end to it. Sure mourning was good to some extant. It was a necessary process after the death of a loved one. But Joseph was right; she had gone too long in misery. It took a good friend to be able to comfort someone in that way…the way he did. _

_Clarisse didn't know that she had ever felt as comforted as she did right then, dancing in his arms. And, oh, how those arms felt. They were strong and sturdy. They offered support when she needed it. In fact, his whole body offered support to hers. She was practically leaning on top of him when the dance finally came to halt. And the two of them stayed that way for a few seconds longer before stepping back from each other. If she hadn't known any better she would have thought that he liked her leaning against him that way. And then again…perhaps she hadn't hated it either._

Clarisse dropped her pen in shock when she realized what she had just allowed to pass through her head. _'Good heavens!'_ She thought, _'where on earth did that come from?' _She had no idea. That was so unlike her, thinking of a man in that way…and JOSEPH of all people! What on earth had gotten into her? To think that that dance had anything to do with…romance…was completely insane! Of course nothing was meant by it! It was merely a dance between friends, and Joseph was simply comforting her the way any friend should.

…But had she not already decided that the song _did_ hold some sense of intimacy in her?

Clarisse shook her head as if to fling those sorts of thoughts away. She couldn't think about that now. There was no need to think about it at all because it was simply nonsense! That dance was Joseph's innocent way of showing how much he cared. Nothing more. "And that's that," Clarisse said the last part out loud.

"You're finished?"Charlotteasked, having just walked into the room and heard her Majesty's comment.

Clarisse realized how she had said that last part out loud. Briefly wondering exactly how much she had said out loud, Clarisse brushed it all aside. "Oh…nothingCharlotte. I was merely thinking out loud," She said and picked up her pen. "If you would excuse me, I have quite a lot of work to do and it would be helpful if I wasn't bothered."

"Yes Your Majesty. I'll see to it that you're not disturbed,"Charlottesaid as she, again, bowed out of the room.

"And turn off that music," Clarisse called before the door completely closed. "It has gotten VERY old VERY quickly and it's giving me a headache!"

* * *

Ok…I just went back and counted for the fun of it…I said the word 'CD' ten times in this chapter (not counting just then)! That's a lot. I suppose I should have changed the word every-now-and-then to things like album or disc…but I'm too lazy to go back and do that now. Plus…I'm sure it didn't really bother you guys anyway huh? …Yeah that's what I thought.

**Author's Note:** "Their friendship was one full of honesty and trust." I found this sentence a funny one to write. Considering this whole story is about Joseph trying to tell Clarisse his **secret**feelings writing that their friendship was one of complete 'honesty and trust' seemed a bit ironic in my opinion. Never the less, I put it in because Clarisse's character doesn't yet know of these feelings so that may be how she looked at the friendship between her and Joseph.

Reviews are always helpful! (hint, hint, wink, wink, nudge, nudge)

-Monker


	3. Snow? or Ice?

Ok guys…don't ask me why but I suddenly decided to make this story take place during the wintertime. I suppose that would sort of make sense considering in the first chapter I mentioned that there was a fire going while Joe was reading. I thought you should know that because I knew there would be some of you guys that would be thinking 'since when was it snowing there?'

Anyway…on to the story…

Deep breath in…Deep breath out…here we go.

* * *

She loved the snow, at least what she knew about it. Snow was a rare thing inSan Francisco. She had heard all of those classic stories…but snowmen and white Christmases were all but a dream to her. That said, Mia was ecstatic when she glanced out the window of her bedroom to see the snowflakes gently drift to the ground. She jumped out of bed and placed her forehead against the window in an effort to grasp it all. She placed her hands against the window as well, as if to feel the snowflakes through the glass. It was beautiful! She had never seen anything like it. Needless to say she was enjoying herself completely.

The moment ended, however, when she heard a knock at the door.

Mia sighed, "I'll make my own bed this morning, thank you," she said towards the door. It was still taking her a while to get used to all of the 'help' that she received. 'Help' didn't even sound like the right word for it. 'Pointless servitude' was more like it. It wasn't as thought she was ungrateful. She loved the meals she ate when at the palace, and a lot of the palace staff were very pleasant people. But there were constantly young women running this way and that, cleaning and straitening things as they went. Mia had been taught to do things on her own. Having someone else make _her_ bed every morning was just a small thing on the top of the 'things-Mia-needs-to-get-used-to list'.

"I wasn't planning on making your bed but if you insist," a familiar voice spoke from behind her.

Mia turned quickly and smiled, 'Sorry,Charlotte. I thought you were one of the maids."

Charlottereturned the smile and nodded, "Ah," she said, "that would explain the bed comment."

Soon after their first meeting, Mia and Charlotte became fast friends. It took a little time and effort to convinceCharlotteto open up, but once she did, she turned out to be a good friend for Mia at the palace.

Charlottecontinued, "I was actually coming to wake you, but I see that you beat me to it."

"Yeah, I woke up and saw the snow," Mia said asCharlotteapproached the window and also took a look outside. "Isn't it pretty?"

Charlottenodded, "I'm glad it's actually sticking."

"What do you mean?"

"Well a lot of the time, here in Genovia, by the time that the snow reaches the ground it has already melted so there's really nothing to look at. This time, though…it might just stay."

The two of them simply stood there for a moment watching the snow land gently on the ground. After a few moments had passed, Mia turned her head and saw that her friend had a small grin creeping up on her face. "What?"

Charlottelooked at Mia and her grin grew even larger.

"What?" Mia asked again, now sporting a similar grin.

Charlotteshrugged her shoulders, "Oh, I was just thinking how cute it would be if we could get Her Majesty and Joseph to take a walk out there it that…Winter Wonderland."

As soon as the words were out of her mouth, Mia's smile grew. "How are we supposed to do that?"

"I don't know…but we'll have to think of something."

* * *

Clarisse jumped as the door to her office swung open, revealing her granddaughter. She automatically knew it was Mia because she was the only one in the palace that ever made such noisy entrances. The Queen turned her head to see her granddaughter beaming with joy as she walked towards the desk.

"Grandma?" Mia asked as she leaned against the desk.

"Yes?" Clarisse couldn't help but smile. Oh, how she loved her granddaughter!

"Let's go for a walk around the grounds!"

Clarisse leaned back in her chair, "Mia, the grounds are stained white with snow! It's freezing out there! We'll catch a cold."

"Oh please, we will not catch a cold. We'll bundle up. Please Grandma?" Mia gave her best 'puppy dog face'.

…that did the trick.

The Queen sighed and removed her glasses. "The things you talk me into!"

Mia squeaked with excitement. "Thank you Grandma! You won't regret it, I promise."

"I wouldn't be too sure about that. I'm not exactly a snow sort of person." Clarisse said as she stood and stepped around the desk to join her granddaughter on the other side.

Mia placed an arm around her grandma, "Oh, come on…what's the worst that could happen?"

"Well, let's see…" Clarisse joked and started to walk with her granddaughter towards the double doors leading out of her office. "…I could get severe frost-bight to the point where the only solution is immediate amputation."

Mia cracked up laughing as the door closed behind them.

* * *

Joseph was glad when he was asked to join the Queen and her Granddaughter on a walk around the grounds. Of course Her Majesty would need protection and as always, Joseph was the first to be called.

When Clarisse appeared through the door, Joseph felt himself smile. That woman would look beautiful in anything! She was bundled up in her winter clothes. She wore a full coat, gloves, windbreaker pants, rain boots, a scarf and a set of earmuffs. Her clothes were so thick it was a wonder how she was able to move her arms and legs at all, yet the woman still looked every bit as regal as if she were in a floor length ball gown. Joseph chuckled lightly as he watched the woman try to descend down the short set of stairs. He debated what she looked most like…he finally decided (with a great deal of amusement) that it was a tie between a pillow and a marshmallow. Never the less…she was the most gorgeous thing in the room.

He saw her nearly trip on the second to last step. He was quickly at her side and steadied her before she fell. She chuckled at her own clumsiness as she shot him a thankful smile. A look that nearly made him lose _his_ balance. It was truly amazing what kind of power this woman seemed to have over him. It was a simple gesture…a mere smile! Yet that very smile made him dizzy simply by receiving it. He returned her smile as he placed a hand on the small of her back and guided her to the door, where Mia was awaiting them.

Mia had observed the whole thing from where she was standing and the look on Joseph's face did not go unnoticed by her. She proved this to him by elbowing him in the ribs when he was near enough.

He got the message. He responded with a quick smirk in her direction.

"Well…shall we?" Mia asked, opening the door.

As the cold air beat against her face, Clarisse pulled her coat around her tighter. Mia went first, followed by Clarisse who was being followed by Joseph.

He walked slowly behind them both, watching them closely. He knew that it was his job to keep an eye on _both_ of them, but he had to admit that there was one individual who was occupying the majority or his glances.

She was smooth and angelic as she glided across the snowy pathway. He watched her walk side by side with her granddaughter. His heart leapt when he heard her laugh as Mia convinced her to eat a small handful of snow.

Clarisse turned and saw Joseph looking at her. It was a look she had never seen him give before. It was a look that would surprise no one if it melted all the snow around them. It was as if he were trying very hard to read something in her eyes. Finally the look slightly softened as he stepped closer and gently raised a hand to her face. He held out his index finger and wiped off some of the snow that had gathered on the tip of her nose. He smiled, and then took a step back from her to allow her to continue her walk.

Clarisse wasn't sure what had just happened. She stared at him a little longer, trying to decide. All the while, he never broke the eye contact. She didn't even try to look away. His gaze seemed to provide a unique sense of warmth. She no longer felt cold as he was looking at her. She was in a trance.

The spell was broken, how ever, when Mia squealed and there was a loud _thump_ noise.

Joseph looked passed Clarisse as she turned around to see what had caused the noise behind her. Mia was sitting on the ground laughing.

Joseph was quickly at her side, helping her up. "Are you alright, Princess?"

"Yeah Joe, I'll be fine," Mia said through the laughter.

"Mia, what happened?" Clarisse asked.

"I think I found a patch of ice."

Joe slid his foot across the ground. "I think you're right, Princess," he said as he let go of her arms and quickly looked her over to make sure she was not hurt. "I'm relieved that you didn't get injured, knowing how much you are prone to accidentally hurting yourself," Joe added with a smile.

"I don't think I would go as far as to say that I didn't get hurt," Mia grimaced as she reached behind her and rubbed the part of her she landed on in an effort to ease the pain.

Joseph chuckled.

Just thenCharlottecame running out onto the porch. "Your Highness!"

Mia looked up and yelled back, "Yes?"

"You have a phone call from America!" Charlotte lied.

"Oh, got to go. But you two are more than welcome to stay out here a little longer," Mia said towards the other two at her side.

Joseph closed his eyes and sighed as he realized that they must have planned this. He shot a look towards Charlotte who was opening the door to let Mia through. She smiled knowingly and waved goodbye.

"Well then…" Clarisse said once both ladies had disappeared into the palace once again.

Joseph looked at her, "Well then…" he repeated.

"Would you like to stay out a bit longer?"

Joseph thought about it briefly, "I am willing to do whatever you decide, Your Majesty."

Clarisse smiled and Joseph once again had to mentally steady himself.

She sighed, "Well I suppose it would be a waste to have gotten all dressed up and have only spent three minutes out here."

Joseph nodded, "That's true."

"Perhaps a few more minutes," Clarisse said as she turned and began to descend the white path. Of course, Joseph followed behind her, carefully watching out for ice.

They walked and talked for a few more minutes before Clarisse said, motioning beside her, "Joseph if you would please…I prefer not to talk over my shoulder."

He immediately understood her meaning and closed the 'two pace' distance that was separating the both of them. Soon after this, Clarisse nearly slipped and Joseph leant his arm to her so she could steady herself. After that moment neither of them wanted to let go…so they didn't. Instead, they continued their walk with interlocked arms.

They walked and talked and laughed. The conversation steered to a familiar subject as Clarisse asked, "So tell me Joseph, where did you learn to dance?"

Joseph sighed and looked upward as if he were trying to remember way back. "My mother made me take a ballroom lessons when I was young. I hated it! I would have been happier going to the park and shooting hoops with my friends. But she insisted…and now…I'm thankful that she did."

Clarisse smiled, "So am I. I have to admit, I have danced with many gentlemen in my time and none of them were ever as talented as you, Joseph."

Joseph gave a flattered smile. "Thank you, Your Majesty. I'm pleased that you thought so," he said. "Perhaps we should try it again some time, in that case."

Clarisse gulped, she wasn't sure if she could do that again. After the thoughts she had had yesterday, she didn't trust herself in that man's arms just yet. She shook off her brief moment of hesitation as she spoke, "Perhaps some time in the future."

They continued to walk but the conversation slowed. As they walked though, Joseph subconsciously began to hum. It was a low, beautifully slow song. Merely by the tune, you could tell it was a love song. Clarisse walked along side him but didn't dare to say a word. She didn't want to disrupt the song. She had known for a couple years just how lovely his voice really was. But Joseph had a shyness that he often kept hidden from others so he would never sing out loud in public. In fact, the only reason she knew how wonderful his voice was, was because she had once walked by the entrance to his room as he was playing a song on his guitar and just so happened to be singing along. But his voice really was wonderful and she always enjoyed the few moments she got to hear it. So she was content to listen to the song as he hummed along.

* * *

Mia and Charlotte looked intently out the window as they watched the couple slowly walk down the snowy path. They watched as Clarisse leaned a little closer to Joseph and said something that made his face grin widely. Clarisse continued to speak and Joe tilted his head back in laughter. Clarisse also joined in the laughter.

"Do they not know that they are flirting?" Mia asked.

Charlottesmiled and shook her head, "I don't know."

Clarisse continued to tease about something and Joseph playfully brought his finger up to rest on her lips as if to silence her. He smiled as he shook his head and said something.

BothCharlotteand Mia saw the interaction between the two of them change once that contact was made. They paused and looked at each other. Joseph stepped in front of Clarisse, this wasn't the best move because now he had his back to the window and Mia and Charlotte could not see his face. Luckily, Clarisse's face could still be seen.

They watched as Joseph brought his hand up to the side of Clarisse's face and gently stroked her cheek with the back of his fingers. They watched as he slowly (_very_ slowly) drew closer to her. Charlotte and Mia held their breath and Mia grabbedCharlotte on the arm as they waited for him to kiss her.

The look on Clarisse's face was difficult to read. A few things were certain: She was going to make no initiative to pursue a kiss, but she wanted it to happen, and she was scared to death that it would. She stood there, with her mouth open and eyes without blinking.

He drew slightly closer…

Somehow… that was too far. She turned her whole body and started walking along the path again while saying something and with a few frantic gestures. Joseph's hand remained in the air after she pulled away. After a moment or two he finally let it drop to his side as his shoulders rose and fell in a sigh. He hung his head low as he followed his Queen back in the direction of the palace.

* * *

Joseph assumed his normal position of two paces behind Clarisse as she hastened towards the palace. "Forgive me, Your Majesty. That wasn't intended to-" He stopped his apology as he saw the Queen before him slip on the ice. Considering her speed, she would have easily landed in her back from such a fall. But luckily for her, Joseph dove to catch her and the both of them fell to the ground with a thud.

She landed on his chest and they both slid a few inches. Realizing their position, she quickly rolled off of him even before their short slide had come to a halt. They were lying on the ground side by side. His arm was supporting her head and his other hand went back behind his head to rub the base of his neck. Then he turned on his side and looked her over while running his free hand up and down her arms in a protective manner.

"Are you alright?" he asked with a look of complete concern flooding out from his eyes. "Were you hurt at all?" His eyes continued to look up and down her body as if expecting to find her missing a limb or two.

She blinked hard a few times and also reached back to feel her head, "I think I'm alright."

They both soon noticed the position they were in and realized how wrong it would look to anyone who happened to see them lying in the snow that way. Joseph stood and tried to help her up. Once both were successfully out of the snow they stood there and noticed that the rest of the walkway was not snow but ice.

"How are we supposed to get across this without doing that again?" Clarisse asked, frustrated.

"I suppose we'll just have to take it slow and try," Joseph said as he firmly grabbed her hand and slowly began to walk with her across the ice.

It was a very slow process. There had to be a faster way. A small smile played across Joseph's lips as he toyed with an idea. No, he probably shouldn't…but it would probably be faster…he finally decided to go with the excuse that it would be faster (but in reality…he just wanted to have that woman in his arms again).

Joseph bent down and picked up the woman next to him. She squealed a rather un-queenly squeal as he did this. "Joseph, what are you doing? Put me down!" She commanded.

"No. This will be faster," He replied simply.

"What makes you think that you will be able to get across this ice any faster then I can?" She asked, only half joking.

"Simple, I'm better at keeping my footing on ice, as you plainly demonstrated just moments ago," He said with a smile.

"Are you saying you're better than I?"

"I'm saying in this particular area…yes. But cheer up…you're better at…walking in heels," He said, as if that would make everything better in her eyes.

She laughed. "Have you ever even tried walking in heels?" she jokingly asked.

Joseph chuckled, a low chuckle from the base of his throat. Luckily for her, Clarisse wasn't standing so she couldn't swoon at hearing it. "Alright so perhaps that was a bad example," Joseph said after short consideration.

Clarisse laughed and then remained quiet as Joseph carefully took each step further, holding her tighter against him as he went. The way he held her, the protectiveness and comfort he inflicted through his tight hold made her consider reconsidering her hasty decision that there was nothing between them after all.

Perhaps…_perhaps_ there _might_ be something there that she had not yet noticed.

* * *

Ok guys that's all I've got for now. I think this chapter was a decent length, don't you?

If you would be so kind…I would very much appreciate a review from you.

Also, any ideas or suggestions on where to take the story or even just what to put in the next chapter would be VERY helpful (hint, hint RevSue)


	4. Callling the Plays

Ok guys…here is another chapter…I hope you like it.

Deep breath in…Deep breath out…here we go

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Joseph set Clarisse gently down once they had made it inside. Olivia was quickly at Her Majesty's side to escort the Queen to her suite to change clothes. Once she disappeared through a hallway Joseph said in a slightly laud voice, "You can stop starring out the window now." He turned to see Charlotte and Mia appear from a smaller hallway.

"You saw us, huh?" Mia asked quietly

Joe smiled at her guilty expression, "Not exactly Princess…but sometimes…things don't have to be visible for them to be known." He winked at the both of them as he started walking towards his rooms.

Of course, they followed and immediately started drilling. "So…how did it go?" was Mia's first question.

"I tried, don't say I didn't try!"

"Why do you think she pulled away?" Charlotte asked.

Joe sighed, "I don't know," he said, " its as if she's afraid to touch me. How am I to win over a woman who in uneasy with my touch?"

"I think she's scared." Mia commented.

"Scared of me? Thank you Princess, that's comforting" he joked.

"No…not you…just of the way you make her feel. I mean…isn't this the first 'relationship' Grandma has had since Grandpa? I think that she's scared of feeling again. And I think that the fact that its you, who she's known for so long, might make it a little nerve wracking for her. I mean…its not like she's spent a lot of time out in the 'dating world', you know?"

Joseph stopped and stared at Mia; he was blown away at the wisdom that he found flowing from this young lady on more then one occasion. What she said was most likely exactly what Clarisse was feeling. He nodded his head thoughtfully at what she said.

"I agree…maybe we are going about this too quickly. We should try to be more subtle," Charlotte said.

Joseph also smiled at what Charlotte had to say, she was using the word 'we'. This had indeed turned into a team effort. Mia and Charlotte were calling the plays and then he went out and executed them on the playing field.

"That's true, " said Mia. "I think now isn't the time for a kiss."

"Then what would this be an appropriate time for?" Joseph asked. He scrunched up his face at his momentary use of poor grammar but soon forgot it when Charlotte began to speak.

"I don't know about you but I thought that the dance went well before."

Joseph looked at her and lowered his eyebrows.

Charlotte then realized that up until that moment, her witnessing of that dance had been secret. She blushed and looked downward.

"What dance?" Mia asked.

Charlotte looked up at Joe as she responded to Mia's question. "While we were in America, I saw Her Majesty dancing with Joseph" she said slowly as if afraid of Joe's reaction.

Joseph blushed and looked away. He had thought that that dance was private. How much had Charlotte seen? Had she seen how he held Clarisse to him long after the song was through? Had she heard his frustrated conversation with himself after Clarisse had left the room?

Charlotte continued, "In my opinion…that was the closest I had ever seen you two. I know for a fact that she had enjoyed it…and maybe…maybe we could somehow manage another dance for you guys that is not at some banquet or something."

Mia smiled, "Yeah! I could ask for another dance lesion and you could try to teach me something really complicated that I would have to watch first. Then we could get Grandma to do the dance with you so I could watch."

Charlotte also grinned as she added "Then I could call you out of the room to give Joe and Her Majesty a little privacy."

Joseph couldn't help but smile, these women certainly thought of good ideas. However, he wasn't sure that it would work. After that dance in San Francisco, Clarisse seemed to act shocked and displeased with the whole thing…she had not seemed happy at all with Joseph's actions. Joseph certainly wondered if he had crossed the line somewhere in that dance.

_"Thank you, Joseph." She said as she gathered her things after her granddaughter had departed the room._

_Joseph looked at the woman that was standing before him. His favorite part of this job had always been knowing Clarisse. She had become more then a boss…she had become a friend, a true friend. He hated seeing her in such deep mourning all of the time. He missed seeing her smile, hearing her laugh._

_He remembered when she first heard the news that her youngest son had passed away. He was standing by the nearest exit, which just so happened to be a few feet away from where she was standing. Ronny, a rookie on the security force, came busting into the room and quickly walked over to Her Majesty, bowing low. He explained the horrible news with tears in his eyes. _

_Joseph watched as Clarisse's face dropped. Her hand flew over her mouth and he was soon at her side to comfort her. Joseph wasn't sure how long he had held her until the tears stopped…_

…_But that was a while ago now. And he was tired of seeing her in mourning. What happened to all of the color that once dwelled in not only her wardrobe but also her spirit? He decided to find out. _

_Gulping and taking a step closer, Joseph reached across her line of vision and turned the CD player back on. "You've been wearing black…too long."_

_She smiled warmly at him and he mentally steadied himself._

_Taking hold of her hand, he guided her to the center of the floor. He led her in a slow dance. At one point he slowly spun her out. Before pulling her back to him he took a brief moment the observe her. Yes…that was indeed more like it. The look on her face was one of peace, not sorrow. He pulled her back to him and they paused. As the break in the music drew out, Clarisse stared at Joseph and he was lost in her eyes. The desire to lean in and kiss her was unbearable, yet…somehow…he seemed to withstand from doing so. They both swayed backward as the music began to play once more._

_Neither seemed to notice when the music finally ended. Joseph didn't let go of her. No…he had no desire to do so. He finally had this woman in his arms at a non-formal event and he wanted to keep her there as long as possible. In addition to not letting go, Clarisse and Joseph also refused to look away. They held each other's gazes contently. _

_It was Clarisse who pulled away first, once she did, Joseph had no other choice but to let go of her. Once she was no longer being held, Clarisse took two large steps backwards. They were still looking hard at each other. Clarisse looked confused as she increased the distance between the two of them. _

_Joseph noticed when her expression changed as he saw her mentally pull herself together. _

"_Well then…that was nice, thank you." She said simply. Then she shot him a quick smile. _

_He recognized that smile. That was the smile that she regularly plastered in her face when she was trying to please someone. It was her 'polite smile' that she gave to people about things that she could really care less about. That smile was used as a front, as a disguise to hind herself from other people that she didn't want to be around. And now she was using it with him? His face dropped…why was she hiding from him?_

_He didn't have time to ask because after what seemed to be a forced sigh, she quickly left the room. Joseph was now left alone with his thoughts._

_He sighed and reached up to wrap his fingers around the back of his head. What on earth just happened? "Oh Joseph, Joseph, Joseph." He said to himself. "You stupid, stupid man. Why on earth did you have to do that? Why couldn't you have just let it be?"_

_He sighed again and leaned his forehead against a nearby pillar. "I should have never danced with her. That was flirting with disaster. I got what I deserved…that…that…poor excuse for a smile. What was I expecting, for her to fall madly in love with me and throw her country into second priority?"_

_He lifted his head from the pillar and banged them together three times. "Oh Joseph…you foolish…foolish man." _

Even though that was over two years ago now, the feeling of being rejected like that was still very real to Joseph…which is why he was a bit skeptical at the idea of Clarisse being willing to dance with him again. But nonetheless…he was willing to give it a shot.

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All right guys…I know this was a little short but it will have to do for a while. I am going out of town for a week and won't be near a computer. So dwell on this chapter for a while and leave me a lot of reviews. (_hint, hint, wink, wink, nudge, nudge)_

--Monker


	5. Dances and Dominos

Sorry for the wait. After I returned from my trip I had severe Writer's Block but finally got this chapter typed out. To give the chapter some length I decided to put in a flashback, I had a lot of fun with this flashback and I really hope you guys enjoy it. I am going to try to get the next chapter to you a lot quicker but I am lacking in the free time department.

Deep breath in…Deep breath out…Here we go…

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Well then, this turned out to be quite a bit easier then Joseph had originally expected. Mia asked for another dance lesson as planned and convinced her Grandmother to stay and watch as she did some of the paper work from the day. Joe was pleasantly surprised when he discovered that Mia was fairly good at acting. As she was convincing Clarisse to join them without giving away anything, she was very convincing. If Joseph hadn't been in on the 'plot' he would have believed that she was merely asking for a dance. He could easily see her making a career out of it if she wanted to, but why wasn't he surprised? This young lady could be successful in anything she decided to do, and he knew it…why should acting beany different?

Clarisse had been watching amusedly for the majority of it, but after a while she started to get frustrated that her Granddaughter could not seem to get the dance right, and she explained as much to Amelia.

Joseph had to keep a small grin from spreading on his face as Mia smoothly replied, "You think you could do any better?"

"I most certainly do," said Clarisse.

"Well fine then, prove it." Mia said, taking a step back and offering her Grandmother a spot in Joseph's arms.

Clarisse immediately regretted her comments once she realized the predicament she had forced herself into. "Ahh…actually…you go right ahead dear. You're about to get it I think."

"No, no Grandma…I want to see you put your money where your mouth is." Mia pushed.

Joseph pretended to cough in an effort to hide the smile that he could no longer barricade. He made a mental note to praise Mia for her performance later.

Clarisse still had a look of uncertainty on her face as she hesitated. She gave in how ever, for she knew that her Granddaughter would never let it die if she were to turn down the offer. She cleared her throat, "Very well then." She stood up and walked over to Joseph who welcomed his new partner willingly.

They took their stance and soon the music began. It was a simple song with a complicated dance, full of turns, spins, twirls, and twists…but together, Joseph and Clarisse pulled it off beautifully. Joseph, as always, appeared as though he were born on the dance floor, and it was clear that Clarisse had been well familiar with the dance ever since she was a little girl. They were stunning together as they glided across the dance floor, perfectly in time with the music. Their eyes were locked on each other, neither one having even the least desire to look away.

Oh, how had she managed to do this to herself again? She should have kept her mouth shut and let the lesson go on as it should have. Instead she made the slightest of comments and, BOOM, she's in this mans arms one again. Its not as though she didn't like dancing with him, on the contrary, she enjoyed it very much…more then she should in fact, and that was the problem. When he held her the way he was now, she felt things that a Queen should not be feeling for a man, a man who works for her non the less. But Joseph was more then a mere employee, he was a dear friend, a friend that's friendship she valued more then any other relationship she had. Feeling things like this was very risky, if ever these feelings were to surface, it would be fatal to their friendship…no doubt about it. Normally she could easily keep these feelings under control, but in moments like these, it would be very easy to let these feelings take over. She was foolish to put herself in such a dangerous position.

But she was enjoying herself. She couldn't help but enjoy the feeling of dancing with him once more. Nor could she ignore the sweet aroma that was coming from him, the cologne he was wearing seemed to enter through her nostrils and flood through all of her body in seconds. As he continued to sweep her across the dance floor, she tried to decide what it was he smelt like…it almost smelt a tad like almonds in her opinion, but she could hardly believe that there was actually an almond scented cologne out there on the market today. She closed her eyes and leaned her head in closer and inhaled deeply. When she opened her eyes, he was staring right at her. It was only then that she realized exactly how close she had leaned in. Their faces were merely inches apart and he was looking at her asthough he wanted to kiss her right then and there. And at that moment, she decided that if he were to close the distance…she wouldn't be able to stop herself from enjoying it.

But he didn't kiss her; in fact he did something quite different. He spun her out a full arms length. At first she thought that he was deliberately distancing himself from her, but then her senses caught up with her long enough for her to remember that it was just that point in the song for the man to spin the woman out and then twirl her back in. And that is just what he did.

Clarisse allowed herself to briefly wonder what this dance must look like to the watching eye. Was her emotion flooding out from her eyes to the point of no retreating? She wondered exactly how closely Mia was watching the dance. Oh, goodness, she hoped not too closely! If anyone could read Clarisse's feelings it was Mia, the girl actually was getting quite good at it really…which was by no means a small task to fulfill. Clarisse tore her eyes away from Joseph's long enough to look at their surroundings to see that they were now suddenly alone in the ballroom. Mia must have slipped away unnoticed. Well if that be the case, then why were they still dancing if the reason for the dance to begin with was so that Mia could observe it?

"Joseph?"

"mmhm?" He replied lowly.

"We've lost our audience."

He looked around the room quickly, and then nodded.

"Then why are we still dancing?"

He lowered his eyebrows slightly in a questionably manner. "Do you want me to stop?" he asked.

She looked hard at him as their dance slowed. "No," she finally said, "…no I don't."

He looked surprised for a moment before giving her a faint smile, "as you wish, madam."

Then their dance was picked back up to its normal pace.

He had, of course, noticed when Charlotte came into the room and pretended to whisper in Mia's ear before they both exited. But he chose to ignore it because he knew that these moments with Clarisse were rare, and if there was one thing Joseph knew, it was how to treasure a moment like this. And boy was he enjoying himself! To him it was like a Stephen Speaks song that he had heard and converted to memory…

_Its her hair and her eyes today...that just simply take me away._

_And the feeling that I'm falling further in love makes me shiver…__but in a good way._

_All the times I have sat and stared...__as she thoughtfully thumbs through her hair._

_And she purses her lips, bats her eyes, and she plays with me sitting there slack-jawed but nothing to say…_

_Cause I love her with all that I am! _

_And my voice shakes along with my hands._

_Cause she's all that I see and she's all that I need __and I'm out of my league once again._

_It's a masterful melody...__when she calls out my name to me._

_As the world spins around her she laughs, rolls her eyes and I feel like I'm falling but its no surprise…_

_Cause I love her with all that I am!_

_And my voice shakes along with my hands._

_Cause it's freighting to be swimming in this strange sea,_

_But I'd rather be here then on land. _

_Yes she's all that I see and she's all that I need _

_and I'm out of my league once again. _

And indeed he was! Joseph knew that he did not deserve this woman in his arms…but he also knew that we are unable to control with whom we fall in love. And he knew that God couldn't have chosen a finer woman then she to direct his feelings toward. She was without a doubt the most wonderful thing that had ever happened to him. And he was well aware of the fact that she was way out of his league and he had never expected the feelings he suddenly felt towards her. And even though he was desperately so now, he had no intension of falling in love with her Majesty… as a matter of fact; he did his best to void the feelings he was having toward her. When he first met her he would have never guested that she would be the one to capture his heart. The very first time he had ever met her was while her boys were still quite young…

_Joe was standing guard at the only entrance to the royal nursery. He hated this post…everyone on the security force did. The nursery was really under the least amount of threat, so there was no need for the regular two-man-post like the rest of the doorways in the palace. That meant that when you were on that post, you were entirely alone with no one to talk to and the only sign of possible life among that desolate hallway was the occasional cry or squeal of laughter from one of the two children behind the door, which you were guarding. That post was assigned almost as a punishment to those who behaved poorly on the security team. And Joseph had behaved poorly. _

_Back then; Joseph had a reputation for having a short temper. He was fairly new to the security force and at the time, he was often mocked because of his size. At that time, he was different from some of the guys on the team in the sense that he was not quite as big and bulky. But his size was nothing to be ashamed of because it wasn't that he was lacking muscle…it was that they were overly muscular. But Joseph made it quite clear that he was no one to be teased with, and that is why he had gotten in trouble. He had picked a fight with two of the 'bigger and bulkier' guys in the gym and did them both equal harm. Once the head of security found out, Joseph was placed in the most boring of all the posts in the entire palace. But he wasn't going to let it bother him. If there was one thing everyone knew about that new Joseph fellow it was that he took his work seriously…no matter how small the task was. _

_That said, Joseph looked as professional as ever as he stood with his back strait and hands cuffed together and gently resting in front of him. He had the common 'security guard scowl' on his face to show that he meant business. _

_He turned his head slightly to see a frantic woman come quickly down the hall. She gave him a polite smile as she entered the nursery. She went over to the woman who was looking after the two Princes and whispered something in her ear. The woman looked surprised as she received the unknown news. _

"_Really?" she asked._

_The first woman nodded._

"_Oh dear. I suppose he'll need help then!" Then both ladies started out the door. The second woman, Mary, stopped to look at Joseph before saying "Oh Joseph, something of great urgency is demanding that I leave here for a few minutes. Will you please be a dear and watch after the boys for a moment?"_

"_That's not my job," he started._

"_I know that but I'll only be away for a few minutes and besides…they really are well behaved. It wont take long I promise!" Mary begged. _

_Joseph sighed and nodded before both women took off quickly down the hall._

_He stepped slowly into the room and was soon greeted by the younger of the two boys, Prince Phillippe. The young Prince tugged on Josephs pant leg to get his attention. Joseph looked down and smiled at the boy as he spoke. _

"_My name is Phillippe, I'm four years old and like horses and Christmas presents. What's your name?"_

_Joseph smiled as he knelt to talk to the lad, "my name is Joe," he said. _

"_Are you going to look after us?" The Crown Prince Pierre said from his spot at the table in front of a coloring book. _

"_For the time being." Joe responded._

"_Will you teach us games, Joe man?" Phillippe asked._

_Joseph sighed while looking around the room at the supply of nice toys. "I suppose I could do that." Then Joseph rose from his kneeling position and walked over to a shelving unit. "Will you be joining us, Your Highness?" he asked in the direction of the Crown Prince._

"_No, I'm to old for games." The boy replied. _

"_Ahh, I see. And how old would that be?" _

"_Six years old!" Pierre said proudly as he held up the proper amount of fingers._

"_mhmm…"Joseph said as he walked towards the six year old while stroking his chin thoughtfully. "One-two-three-four-five-" he pretended to count under his breath while tapping the boy's fingers lightly on the tips.Then he turned to look at the youngest, "He's right, you know. I count six, that's over a whole hand of fingers!"_

_Phillippe began to giggle, he liked this new Joe man. _

_Then Joseph turned back to Prince Pierre, "Six years, that's impressive. You're catching up to your father I see."_

_Then Pierre also began to giggle._

_Joseph leaned closer and said a bit softer. "But if you stop playing games its not because you've gotten too old but because you've stopped trying. Do you understand?"_

_The boy nodded and joined his brother along with Joseph in the new game._

_Mary was gone longer then anticipated but Joseph didn't mind, he enjoyed spending time with the young Princes. After a little while, Joe had an idea to show the boys how to play with dominos, only they were lacking the dominos so they had to use anything that looked to be the proper size for it. They built a rather impressive layout. _

"_All right, I think its ready." Joseph said with a grin after the last 'domino' was in place. _

_The boys looked at each other and grinned before quickly (but carefully, in order to not knock any of them over) running to the front of their new toy. Joseph followed (equally as careful) and laid in between the two boys on the floor. He put his fingers together, ready to flick the first piece. He looked to his left and then to his right at the grinning and obviously eager faces beside him. _

"_One…" he said, "…two…three!" he said with a grin as he was just about to flick the piece but suddenly stopped upon hearing the door open. _

"_Hello boys," greeted Queen Clarisse as she stepped into the nursery._

"_Mother!" both boys sprung to their feet._

_Joseph also stood, though this time not near as carefully as he had before. The tip of his shoes tapped the first domino, causing it to teeter before falling, making all of the rest follow in suit. _

_The faces of Pierre and Phillippe both lit up as they watched the scene take place. Once the wave of dominos reached its halt the two boys cheered and gave each other a hardy high-five._

"_Did you see that Mother?" Phillippe asked excitedly. _

_Clarisse smiled, "yes I did. It was very impressive, I must say."_

"_Mother," Pierre started, "we want you to meet our new friend Joe" he said as he and Phillippe each grabbed a hand and pulled Joseph over to where their mother was standing at the doorway. _

_Once he had been pulled the whole way Joseph bowed and kissed her Majesty's hand lightly. "Your Majesty." He greeted as professional as ever._

"_Well thank you for entertaining my children, Joe, is it?" she asked with a polite smile._

"_Either that or Joseph, which ever you prefer madam" was his response._

_She smiled at him once again, "Well Joseph, did my husband allow our usual nanny some time off without my knowing?"_

"_Actually madam, Mary was called away for something very important and asked me to watch after Their Highness' until her return."_

"_I see, then what is it you do normally?"_

"_I'm on the security team, Your Majesty." _

"_Oh, well thank you for what you are doing, both as part of your job and…" she turned to look at her two boys, "…and as things on the side."_

"_You're most welcome your Majesty." He bowed slightly._

"_I believe I can take over from here for a while, until Mary's return." She said running her fingers through Pierre's hair._

"_Of course." Joseph said as he began to walk out the door. _

"_Bye Joe man!" Phillippe said through the door, causing Joseph to flash him one more grin before closing it. _

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I know that might have seemed like a odd place to stop it but I'm tired and I know for a fact that you guys are tired of waiting so I wanted to get this thing posted as soon as possible. I do plan on concluding the dance lesson in the next chapter for all those who care.

I am sorry for the wait though; I figured I could make up for it with a longer chapter. Did it work?

Authors Note: If ever you run into a severe case of writer's block like I did, I recommend adding in some song lyrics and/or a flashback. They take up a lot of space and are usually a lot of fun to write.

--Monker


	6. Wordless Conversation

I AM SO SORRY! The reason behind such a long wait is that during my writing of this chapter my computer died during the night before I had the chance to finish it. It went through a LONG process of recovering from what ever virus it seemed to have gained. I'm so sorry for the wait though (at least this time it wasn't from writer's block...I have a very good reason this time.).

_Voice from speakers_-- "Regular updates were currently delayed due to technical difficulties. Please keep hands and arms inside the vehicle. Your journey through this story will soon return to its normal pace. Thank you for waiting."

Deep breath in...Deep breath out...here we go

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After what seemed to be a short while, the song came to its close as well as the dance. Charlotte and Mia were watched closely from a doorway that was conveniently in the shadows. Though the dance was over they still held each other (just as they had those few years ago). The two women watched intently as the couple stared at one another. It almost appeared as though they were silently talking with one another through their eyes. They were truly a sight to behold as they glided flawlessly across the ballroom floor on such a complicated path. Mia was glad that she wasn't actually trying to learn the dance because it looked so difficult just by watching her Grandmother and Joseph perform it just then.

"Is it just me, or do I see sparks?" Mia whispered to Charlotte.

Charlotte grinned, "I see them too," she replied.

They watched as Joseph raised his hand to gently stroke Clarisse's cheek with a single finger.

"They make such a cute couple." Said Mia.

"I agree…oh no, what's happening?"

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Joseph had severe déjà vu as he heard Clarisse's soft intake of breath and then saw her retreating from him. But this time he did not let her go so easily. He grabbed her hand, which forced her to turn to face him again. She looked at him pleadingly, "Please Joseph…no" she said in a barely audible voice.

He gulped and pulled her closer to him placing his free hand on her shoulder. Releasing his hold on her hand he lifted up her face that she had dropped when he pulled her closer so that they were eye to eye. "You're beautiful…in every sense of the word" he charmed.

A warm smile spread across her face at his kind words. "Oh Joseph…thank you" she said with one hand cupping his cheek lightly, a gesture of affection that she reserved only for him…and that thought made him warm inside.

He grabbed the hand that was placed on his cheek and brought it to his lips with a slow bow. It was a gesture that was no stranger to her, and it was common even for him to make it…but some how, even though he had done it to her before, the way he never stopped staring into her eyes as he dropped the kiss delicately onto her hand…there seemed to be much more to that kiss on the hand then there was normally.

After he kissed it softly, Joseph bowed his head completely and held the back of her hand against his forehead. This was a gesture rarely giving now-and-days that signaled complete and utter respect and service to the one whom it was given to. Clarisse understood this and accepted his act of humility gratefully. Oh Clarisse, how simply mad you must be not to fall into love with this man the way he has continuously but silently invited you to do for so many years!

When he rose back to a standing position he could see the slightest sign of tears dwelling in her eyes. She politely excused herself and started walked out of the room, once she was through the door Joseph heard her pace quicken as she headed towards her rooms.

Joseph sighed and sunk his hands deep into his pockets as he also began to walk out of the room.

He headed out one of the doorways and saw that Mia and Charlotte were waiting for him. He looked at the two women who were returning his gaze. He could tell that they didn't know what to say so he saved them the trouble. "If its alright ladies," he said, "I think I'd like to be alone right now."

They both nodded absently and he glanced at the ground behind them before nodding his thanks and starting off down the other end of the hall.

Joseph walked out into the freezing cold not minding that he was not appropriately dressed for the temperature. He didn't care how cold it was, he needed some privacy, besides, as long as he stayed out of the direct snow, the cold air shouldn't be too unbearable.

He walked silently along the white snow that had covered the path that lead to the horse stables.

That moment in there with Clarisse was on the verge of unbearable for him. Indeed they had been silently talking as they held each other after the dance. He had declared his love for her without the aid of words. She had listened and considered. She was turning him down as she turned to leave and he grabbed her hand, begging her to rethink her decision.

As he declared her beauty, she responded with a warm smile. Even though he was leaving open the door for her to accept his love openly…she merely replied with a 'thank you' and a hand on the cheek.

Joseph walked into the stables and headed over to Abilene's stall. Abilene was his favorite horse, she originally belonged to Prince Philippe but after his passing she became very aggressive. Joe was really the only one that could get her to calm down enough for him to ride her. She was a very spirited and well-trained horse. She stamped her foot on the ground when she saw him approaching.

"There, there girl. I know…you're ready to get out of this stall." He said as he grabbed her saddle and blanket before opening the gate to her stall. He stood almost directly in front of the horse and stroked her nose, "I'm up for a ride, how 'bout you?"

The horse whinnied and wagged its head up and down and Joseph chuckled as he placed the saddle on her back and secured the buckle. He grabbed her rains and placed then on her face without a fight. Then grabbing her lead robe he guided her out of the stables.

"Alright girl, you set the pace." He said with a soft pat to Abilene's neck. The horse started to canter out to the fields where she and Joseph usually took their rides together.

Abilene began to pick up some speed and Joseph began to maneuver the horse like a professional through tight turns and loops. As their ride continued, so did his train of thought…

He had been rejected yet again. He held the gaze as intensely as he could and gave her hand the kiss that belonged on her lips. He wanted to show her that though his heart was forever hers; he would continue to wait on her until she decided to return the affection. He held her hand to his head as a sign of his servant hood to this woman that he loved. She understood his message…he was sure of it by the look on her face.

After that…she left him…again. She turned him down…again. And she walked away, as if turning her back to him would somehow dim the fire that was burning inside him? No, that would never happen. This was a blaze that no one could ever cause to die down.

Abilene was slowing down and Joseph decided that that was enough for now. He was probably driving this poor horse into the ground with how hard he was working her. The cold air beating against his face was starting to affect him. He (along with his horse) was huffing and puffing and the cold winter air was stinging as it was inhaled into his already freezing lungs. Indeed he was going to walk away from this with a cold, no doubt about it.

He rode Abilene to the front of the stables where he dismounted and reattached the lead rope to guide her to her stall.

"You are a fine horse," he told her as he rewarded her by placed her bag of oats on her face after removing her equipment. He then started the slightly long walk back up to the palace. If only he would have glanced up towards the windows of the fourth floor he would have seen a familiar face gazing down at him.

From her place at the window by the sitting aria in her suite Clarisse had a perfect view of the fields bellow. For the most part she was just starring at the horizon, until she noticed a figure on a horse speeding across the field. She mentally rolled her eyes at the irony. She came here to escape him and here he was yet again to invade her thoughts. She watched him as he maneuvered the horse through tight turns and sudden accelerations; moves that would to anyone else seem choreographed and rehearsed regularly. But she knew better, she and Joseph had spoken about his experience in horsemanship before, it hadn't taken long for her to understand that he was trained well enough to pull off such difficult maneuvers without the need to rehears them first.

She narrowed her eyes in effort to see the expression on his face. Once she saw it, her heart sank. He had a look of brokenness in his eyes. The determination that he expressed appeared to be a form of a mask to hide the distinct pain he was obviously feeling. She knew that she was the cause of this pain and she could hardly stand it. She had turned him down yet again and she knew it.

It didn't take more then a split second for her mind to replay the previous scene that took place between her and the man that was now ridding fiercely up and down the field before her on what now appeared to be an exhausted horse.

She remembered everything, from the very dance steps they were executing to the feel of his lips on her hand, to the cold tear that surprised her as it slid down her cheek making her quicken the pace to her rooms. She hated hurting him like that. But she had no choice! It was a critical time for Genovia in the sense that the entire country was still trying to get used to the new Princess that seemed to randomly find her way into the Royal Family. It was no time to throw the country another curve ball! She could already see the headline…

_**QUEEN JUMPS INTO DATING CIRCLE BEFORE PRINCESS!**_

Or…heaven forbid…

**_QUEEN SEEKS THRILLS WITH PALACE SECURITY GUARD!_**

And even personal embarrassment aside, she couldn't bear to put Joseph in the public eye that way. He seemed much to content in the shadows to be suddenly flung into the spotlight like that. And as cruel or harsh as it may sound…he enjoys being in the shadows and that's where he shall remain…along with whatever relationship that may be transpiring between them.

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Ok guys I understand that that may have been a weird place to end it but I felt that I had kept you waiting LONG ENOUGH! So I decided to post it.

Please leave a review, I am hoping that I didn't lose TOO many of my readers during the wait.

--Monker


	7. Nothing will come of It

See...? That wasn't THAT long of a wait, now was it? I also tried to make this one a bit longer than my last chapter...just to give you guys a little bit more to keep you occupied until my next post.

Something you should know: Once again, I was in a bit of a rut as far as creative plots went. So, once again, I requested help, but this time from Annette-Rose for some suggestions. She was kind enough to give me this beautiful idea so...the creative genius in this chapter is entirely her own. The chapter however, is mine. Also, I would like to thank

Annette-Rose for also proof reading this chapter first.

Authors Note: I decided that this chapter was going to take place a month or so after the previous chapters. I am doing this because I wanted to write a scene between Clarisse and Joseph but forgot to do it earlier. And I didn't want to have it take place directly after the dance lesson because I didn't want to have that slight awkwardness between the characters for this scene. I figure that after a month or so it might be a little less awkward between Joseph and Clarisse.

I just thought I would give you that heads up so that you weren't confused. Anyway...I hope you enjoy.

Deep breath in...Deep breath out...here we go

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It had been roughly a month since Mia 'suggested' that her grandmother and Joseph share a dance. After that moment, Clarisse was afraid that it may be awkward around Joseph. To her surprise, the morning after, Joseph had shown no signs of awkwardness around her. He behaved as every bit professional as he always had...as though nothing at all had happened. She was glad of that, too. That made things a whole lot easier on her.

As far as Joseph was concerned, he had convinced himself that nothing was going to come of it and, after the hard task of convincing Princess Mia and Charlotte the same, he stopped his attempts at pursuing Her Majesty.

Everything was beginning to get back to normal. Joseph sat in a familiar chair and grabbed the first book within reach. Even though he himself had denied the feelings for her he was having, Clarisse was still clouding his thoughts. So he decided that a small reading session would be in order.

On the other side of the palace, in Princess Mia's suite, Charlotte was listening as Mia thought out loud what she thought about Joseph's sudden decision. The decision he expressed to the both of them as he tried to convince them that nothing would come of his pursuit of Her Majesty. But to say that he 'convinced' Mia and Charlotte is a bit misleading because neither of the women were at all pleased when he politely said that

'enough was enough'.

"I don't get it Charlotte" Mia said as she stomped about the room angrily.

"What on earth made him change his mind all of a sudden? I mean; normally I would be right there backing him up, you know? But this time...it just seems like he gave up...he just quit! And Joe never struck me to be the quitting type, ya know? I don't know why he would just...stop like that."

"Mia, that was over a month ago. Maybe he's right...maybe it's time to just stop," Charlotte suggested from her place on the couch as she watched Mia pace this way and that.

Mia stopped dead in her tracks and turned slowly to face Charlotte with an open mouth.

"I can't believe you just said that!"

Mia's reaction was enough to get Charlotte to rethink her comment. Charlotte opened her mouth to speak but Mia never gave her the chance.

"You mean to tell me that YOU believe that 'nothing is going to come of it. I feel that it is high time I "throw in the towel" as it were'?" As Mia said the last part she used her best Joe impersonation.

Charlotte giggled,"That was very good, Princess!"

Mia gave a mock, bashful smile, "Oh, you flatter me".

Mia took a seat next to Charlotte on the couch, "But seriously, you can't look me in the eye and tell me that you think they aren't made for each other," she said softly.

"That's true. I can't deny that. I can honestly tell you that, of all my years at the palace, I have never seen Joe happier than when he is with your Grandmother. And the same holds true for her. After you Father and Grandfather died, Her Majesty drifted away from all forms of emotion it seemed. The only expressions she showed were that of sorrow and the occasional polite smile for the public. She was so distant from everything. Only just a few years ago was she brought back to the way she used to be. And the only person that could have done that did...and that was Joseph," Charlotte said as she remembered all those years of watching her Queen mourn that way.

Charlotte was brought back from her thoughts when she heard Mia speak.

"Then you agree something needs to be done to get those two together, right?"

Charlotte looked at her and nodded.

"Then let's start thinking," Mia said with a smile.

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Meanwhile, back in the cozy library...

Clarisse stood frozen in the doorway. Of course, HE out of all people had to be reading at that exact moment. She had come here to escape him, to get her mind off of him. She thought that she could read a good book...that usually seemed to help. Normally she would simply grab one of the many books that were supplied on the book shelf in her suite. But she, like most women, was a sucker for a good romance novel so the majority of the books in her suite were love stories and that was the LAST thing she wanted to read right now. So, in the end, she decided to go to the palace library and read what was there.

But just as she was about to step into the room she froze because there, sitting by the fire, was the very man she was trying to mentally run from. She quickly decided that now wasn't a very good time for a book anyway so she was just about to turn and walk back up the hall when all of a sudden, she put too much weight on her left leg and that caused the floor beneath her foot to creak slightly. And of course, Josephs well trained ears were startled by the noise and he quickly looked up.

Once his gaze fell upon her she knew that it was too late for a retreat now. So she faced her troubles calmly...or...tried to.

"Good morning, Joseph" she greeted from her place in the doorway.

His face looked confused as he glanced and the grandfather clock that was just to the left of the fireplace.

"It's nearly six o'clock at night, Your Majesty."

"Oh, I uhh uhh meant to say good night," She said as she pinched the bridge of her nose and closed her eyes while shaking her head lightly.

"You...came all the way down here to tell me good night?" He asked, still confused as to why his Queen seemed so scatter minded.

"No, that is not why I came...I-I came to read a book," She practically announced the last part as if it were to be a new law in Genovia.

Joseph couldn't help but smile slightly; he had never seen her this way before. But he liked it. It was more of Clarisse and less of Her Majesty...and he always enjoyed seeing that.

"Well then, this would be the place to come," he said as he nodded his head and looked about the room.

"Indeed," She said as she walked over to the bookshelf and grabbed the first book she saw.

Clarisse took a seat in the chair across from Joseph. She opened the book and began to read. After the first paragraph, Clarisse leaned slightly to the side in an effort to see what Joseph was doing. She saw his head make a sudden, almost abrupt movement to the side. If she didn't know any better, it almost looked as though he was staring at her and was afraid to be caught. But she couldn't tell for sure. He seemed rather relaxed as he reclined in what appeared to be a rather uncomfortable chair with his feet propped up on the elegant coffee table that separated the two of them. She tried not to look eager as she strained to read the title of the book he was reading. The room was so poorly lit that it was a wonder either of them could be reading at all. Finally the fire sparked just enough that she could make it out. Another Grape on the Vine is what it read.

She sat back in her chair, "So...are you enjoying your book?"

Joseph's smile almost seemed to be one of irony as he replied, "Oh yes...this has always been one of my favorites."

"What is it about?"

He shifted in his chair as he pondered his response. "Oh, its, uh, a suspense thriller," then he added, "...for the ages."

Clarisse nodded.

"What about yours?" he asked.

At first Clarisse didn't know what he was talking about. Then it dawned on her, he meant the book. Well, to be perfectly honest, she hadn't the least idea what the story was about. She had only been reading the first paragraph over and over again, so really the only thing she knew so far was that it involved a dog named Rusty and a river of some sort.

Clarisse glanced up at the top of the page where the publisher had conveniently placed the book's title.

"Its called Pearls per year," she read.

"What's it about?"

"Oh you know," she said as she thought quickly in her head "it's just your typical..." she flipped the book closed so that she could glance down at the cover. The cover showed a young woman in a blue green dress holding a parasol over her shoulder. Next to the woman was a man that had a scruffy dog at his side. In the distance there was what appeared to be a small cottage. Once again, Clarisse rolled her eyes at the irony.

"...love story" she finished.

He nodded his head absently then looked up at her. She was even more stunning in the dark room as the light from the fire glistened off of her eyes. He jerked his eyes away from her. He clenched his jaw and inhaled deeply. He couldn't allow himself to keep thinking that way about her. Nothing was going to come of it! He had to just keep telling himself that. He stood to dismiss himself before he tried something stupid.

"If you'll excuse me, Your Majesty, I have some things that need to be done before I end the day."

He began to exit the room but was stopped when he heard his name being called from behind him. He turned around and faced her once more.

"Yes?" he asked calmly.

She hesitated for a short while, she almost appeared to be afraid of what she was about to say. Finally...she spoke, "You look rather nice today, Joseph".

He was caught off guard by the random flattery. But he nodded his thanks and replied, "As do you".

She responded by giving him a warm smile. He, again, clenched his jaw and glanced at the ground. He brought his head up and gave her a small smile and a nod before he turned and exited the room.

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Joseph hurried down the hallway. He had a thing or two to say to those girls once he found them.

He nodded to Sinatra and Dean who were positioned outside Princess Mia's suite. Their real names were Michael and Drew, but they were given the nicknames of Sinatra and Dean the moment the rest of the security team realized that between the two of them, they knew every Frank Sinatra and/or Dean Martin song ever written. The two young men smiled at Joe as he knocked on the door.

"Come in!" came the muffled reply after what sounded to be brief scrambling.

Joseph nodded again to Dean and Sinatra as they opened the doors for him. Joseph walked into the room and was pleased to find both women he was looking for. He waited for the doors to be securely shut before speaking.

"I remember asking you two to stop," he said.

Mia and Charlotte looked at each other in confusion.

"What are you talking about?" Mia asked.

"I know that you aren't happy with it but I am done chasing after her. If Clarisse doesn't want me then there's nothing I can do about it. I've given up and I think it's time you ladies thought about doing the same".

"But we had given up". Charlotte said.

"What?" Joe asked.

"We didn't try anything, I swear!" Mia said.

Joe squinted his eyes and turned his head slightly, "you mean to tell me that what happened in the library just now had nothing to do with you?"

Mia and Charlotte again looked at each other, "Look Joe, what ever just happened in the library...we had no idea it was even happening," Charlotte said honestly.

But now Mia was curios, "But what DID happen in the library just now?"

Joseph thought about it for a moment. So Mia and Charlotte DIDN'T set that up? It was just a coincidence? He could have sworn that Charlotte and Mia were behind it somehow. If he had known that it really was fate...then perhaps he wouldn't have left so abruptly, perhaps he would have simply enjoyed her company. Then Joseph remembered the question at hand.

He looked up at Mia and Charlotte and smiled, "oh...nothing" he said with a shake of his head. Then he turned and opened the door.

Charlotte and Mia exchanged looks before both lunging forward and each grabbing an arm to pull him back into the room.

"Oh, no you don't," Mia said asJoe turned around and sighed.

"You're not getting away THAT easy".

"Yeah Joe, tell us what happened," Charlotte said.

Joseph cuffed his hands behind his back, "I can assure you, Your Highness that nothing happened. If somthing of consquence had happened I can asure you, youwould have been the first to be informed".

At first Mia was caught off guard by his sudden formal address but soon realized that it was because the two door men were now within earshot. When Joseph shot her a sneaky smile, Mia knew that he had done this on purpose because he knew that she would never continue such a private conversation if she knew others were eaves-dropping. This meant that Mia would be forced to end her drilling there and Joseph would be free to keep his secret.

She glared at him as she acknowledged his sneakiness, "Well then, Joseph...this conversation shall continue later".

He smiled once more as he bowed his head lightly, "Oh, I have no doubt, ma'am".

She shot him one more glare before he turned to walk away and the door once again closed.

"That was well played on his part, you must admit it," Charlotte said with a smile.

"Oh, I'll admit it...I'm just not happy with it," Mia replied.

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Authors Note: I decided to bring back the book from the first chapter (Another Grape of the Vine) and just have a little fun with it. I hope you liked it because I did. Also, 'Pearls per Year' is another made up title. If it exists somewhere out there, I once again had no idea.

There you go...the next post is on its way I promise.

Leave a review if you'd like.


	8. Secretly calling the Plays

Sorry about the long wait. I hope you guys liked this chapter, the next one is on its way, I promise!

**Author's Note:** The beach that is mentioned in this chapter, "the Mritz Shores", is just something I made up. I know very little about Genovian geography (not that there's much to know) so I simply made up a name. However, I don't feel any sort of bond for it so if you like the name and wish to use it in a story of your own, I give you full permission to do so. No need to check with me first.

Deep breath in...Deep breath out...here we go

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From its place on the fourth floor, Clarisse's office window had a wonderful view of the fields below. Even though it was still the middle of February, Genovia was warming up quite a bit. The snow was long since gone so even though it was not what you would call 'hot weather', there was no need for one to be all bundled up before going outside like there was only a month or so ago.

Clarisse thought about how nice it would be to go for a walk outside the palace grounds. At that very moment she wanted nothing more than to walk on the beach without anything on her feet, no shoes, no stockings...just feet. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath in. Yes...that would be nice.

Clarisse was pulled away from her thoughts when she heard a knock at the door.

"Come in," she called from her spot by the window.

Charlotte hurried in and was about to say something when Her Majesty cut her off.

"Charlotte, wouldn't it be just glorious to spend today at the beach?"

Charlotte's first thought was that it would take too long to get to the beach. By the time that they had prepared a limousine and driven all of the miles that separated them and the Mritz Shores it would be getting dark. But Charlotte didn't say any of these things, she merely nodded her head. "Yes, I think that would be lovely, Your Majesty."

"What does my schedule look like, Charlotte. Do I have an hour or two to spare?" Clarisse went on.

Charlotte looked at her clipboard, though she already knew the answer. "I'm afraid not, Your Majesty. The earliest you'd be able to do would be tomorrow morning."

Clarisse scowled out the window. Luckily for her, Clarisse had her back to Charlotte so there was no chance she could have caught the childlike frown Clarisse expressed when she heard she couldn't go outside and play. She sighed "oh well, I suppose that will have to do. Charlotte, put it in my schedule for tomorrow. I'll need a driver and I plan to be gone for at least two hours or so."

"Yes, Your Majesty," Charlotte said as she wrote it down on her pad of paper.

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Charlotte knocked on Princess Mia's door.

"Come on in, the water's fine!" she heard from the other side.

Charlotte walked in to find Mia sitting on the couch in front of the TV with her arm under a pillow.

"Oh, I'm glad it's you," Mia said pulling her arm out from under the pillow to reveal a box of cookies that was firmly grasped by Mia's hand.

"Grandma told me not to ruin my appetite because lunch should be ready pretty soon...but I just couldn't help it. I mean, come on...its chocolate chocolate-crunch! You want some?" Mia asked as she held out the box to her friend.

"I don't think so, I'm watching my figure," Charlotte declined.

"Oh, come on! You're one of the most fit women I know. Besides, why would you need to watch your figure when you've already got every guy in the palace watching it for you?"

Charlotte's jaw dropped. "Excuse me?" she said with a shocked smile.

Mia grabbed her stomach in laughter at her friends' expression. "Just kidding. Just kidding" she said.

Both women calmed down as Charlotte took a seat next to Mia.

"Here," Mia said handing Charlotte one of the mini chocolate chocolate-crunch cookies, "take it."

Charlotte accepted the cookie and took a bite.

"Now," Mia started, "to what do I owe the honor of your visit?"

"Oh yeah, I had almost forgotten why I came in the first place. Your Grandmother just asked to have a few hours alone at the beach tomorrow and I was just thinking that now would be a good time to come up with a plan to get her and Joseph together...I mean, considering the romantic atmosphere of the beach." Charlotte said.

And with that, the two woman started thinking. Their job was now a whole lot harder than before. Before, they couldn't let the Queen know what they were doing...but now...they couldn't let her OR Joseph know what they were doing. It was a rather tall order. Charlotte had come up with a few ideas but before she could voice them, she would note a flaw in the plan and therefore, decided not to waste her time explaining something that wouldn't work.

Just then, Mia gasped and grabbed Charlotte's arm with enthusiasm.

"I just had the GREATEST idea ever!"

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Joseph leant back in his chair as his eyes jumped back and forth from screen to screen surveying the scenes of hallways that were flashing before him. For the most part the palace was calm; there wasn't really a whole lot that was happening. Some of the screens showed several rooms flashing in sequential order over and over again; these were non-important rooms such as hallways or doorways. And then some screens were fixed on certain rooms alone, like bedrooms, the library, the kitchen and things of that sort.

Joseph was only half listening as Jerry described a rock concert he had recently witnessed to the other men in the room. He kept subconsciously checking on 'the girls' (this was a code name the security team had made so it would be easier then having to say 'Her Majesty' and 'Her Highness' all the time), Mia was on the screen second to the end, which showed her suite, talking with Charlotte about something. And Clarisse could be found on the screen just above Mia's which showed Her Majesty's royal office. She was sitting at her desk writing...but she seemed to be distracted by something out the window. Joseph wondered what it was that met her fancy beyond that glass.

She set down her pen and gently rested her chin on her fist with her elbow set firmly on the desk. Joseph matched her position as he leaned slightly closer to the screen in front of him. A small smile claimed his face when he saw her shoulders rise and fall in a content sigh. What ever she was looking at, it was certainly pleasing her.

His smile dropped though. Why did he keep tormenting himself like this? He was hurting enough as it was to know that he could never have her, so why he felt the need to stare at the very thing that was causing him such inner turmoil was beyond him. He thought he was getting over her! Joseph silently sighed and mentally shook his head. No...he would never get her off his mind...so there was no sense in trying. Even still, it hurt too much to watch her.

He tore his gaze away from that screen and looked at the one below it.

Mia was using her arms animatedly, as though she were explaining something to Charlotte in grave detail. Joseph chuckled quietly to himself. It was no doubt another prank to play on the unsuspecting staff of the Genovian Palace. He had to admit, that last one, on the Prime Minister, was really quite funny. Even the Prime Minister himself had a good laugh at it once he realized what was happening. Good old Sebastian, he always knew how to take a good joke. But he shall think twice before accepting an invitation to stay at the palace for a week the next time Mia offers.

Joseph turned his chair around and listened as Jerry continued to rant and rave about this new rock group he had just discovered.

"I'm telling you guys, as you walk out of one of this guys' concerts, you feel as if you've been deprived of all musical culture your whole life!" Jerry said with enthusiasm.

Joseph couldn't help but let out a laugh at hearing that.

"Musical culture? You have to be joking! Nothing can be considered musical unless you can dance to it. That's my opinion," Joe stated.

"You can dance to rock," said Jerry.

"Excuse me but, this..." Joe stretched his arm out and pointed to the ceiling while he nodded his head up and down, "...is not considered dancing in my books".

A couple of the guys in the room began to laugh at this and Joe even heard Sinatra say "That's true! I'll agree with that!"

"Yeah, what ever," Jerry waved his hand at Joe as if to dismiss his comment.

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Mia watched Charlotte closely, she could almost see the wheels turning in her head as Charlotte considered the plan Mia had just explained. Charlotte continued to think...and think some more. Finally...she spoke.

"Do we even know how to do that?" she asked.

"Please, Charlotte. I dated a mechanic for a year and a half. Though I don't know everything there is to know about cars...I know how to do that," Mia said with a grin.

"Ok," Charlotte said "I'll leave it to you then".

"Good! Tomorrow morning then?"

Charlotte nodded, "I'll meet you in the garage at 6:30, ok?"

Mia sighed and nodded, "Joe and Grandma better be grateful for this someday...I really prefer to avoid getting up at that hour the best I can".

Charlotte laughed and patted Mia on the shoulder. "You'll be ok".

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I hope you liked it. Be sure to leave me a review.

--Monker


	9. at the Beach

**Author's Note**: I'm not entirely sure that I spelt Elsie Kentworthy's name correctly so I am apologizing in advance to all of you "fact checkers" out there.

**Another Author's Note**: I recall The Marauders3 mentioning in a review that they would like to see some flirting between Clarisse and Joseph in some future chapters, so I embraced that request and made a note to put some flirting in this chapter. So The Marauders3, I hope you enjoy this one.

Deep breath in...Deep breath out...here we go

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_**BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP!**_

Joseph jolted from his sleep and his hand subconsciously silenced the alarm clock that was being quite annoying from its place on his night stand. _'Curse that no good clock!'_ Joseph thought, _'that was a perfectly good dream you just ruined!'_

He sat up in bed and looked once more at the 'no good clock' and sighed. Starting at his forehead and working its way to his chin, Joseph ran his hand down his face. Then he shook his head violently in effort to wake himself up. He had to be ready for the day ahead, it would involve him driving and he couldn't do that if he was half asleep. When Charlotte addressed him just last night and requested that he choose one of his men to accompany Her Majesty on a trip to the beach Joseph, of course, offered himself for the job. He preferred it that way because, even though his men had proven themselves multiple times before, Joseph still didn't like the idea of Clarisse being out of his sight and outside the palace walls. He thought it would be best that way, because then he could be certain she was taken care of. Just why did it have be at this unearthly hour?

Joseph grabbed the clock and turned on the radio that was built in to the little beast. He listened for the weather forecast as he stood and walked over to the wardrobe that held his shirts. He was relieved when he heard the voice of Seth Conner instead of that dreadful Elsie Kentworthy. Joseph personally would take the _Good morning, Genovia_ broadcast over _Eggs with Elsie_ any day of the week.

"Good morning, Genovia. This is Seth Conner coming to you live from down town. In just a moment our very own Nick Raymond is going to give you guys the weather forecast for the day but right now let's take things over to _Good morning Genovia's_ very own Missy Webb for a shocking turn of events."

"That's right Seth, Genovia's own rising star in the music industry, Elaine Mossier, has just learned of a shocking truth that may ultimately change her career forever."

"Yadda, yadda, yadda." Joe said as he laid his black shirt on the bed and opened the drawer to retrieve his pants. "I just want to know the weather forecast! Get to the important news already."

"Thank you, Missy. Now let's send things over to Nick Raymond for your local forecast." Seth Conner said in his trademark voice that landed him the job on _Good morning Genovia_.

Joseph listened as Nick explained that it would be mostly sunny until around noon, then it was told to get rainy in the afternoon and evening. That's all he needed to know. Joseph flipped the radio off and continued to get dressed and groomed for the day ahead.

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It was a rather comical sight and Charlotte had to stiffen the laughter that was trying to force its way out. Mia was practically being swallowed head first by the hood of one of the eleven limousines that were in the Genovian Royal garage. Charlotte made the mistake of letting one of her giggles loose.

After brief struggle, Mia emerged from the car with a greasy face and a wrench in one hand. "And precisely what is so funny here?" she asked.

"With all do respect Your Highness, you look..."

Mia gave her friend a death glare.

"...like a pro" Charlotte finished.

Mia smiled and leaned over the car once more.

"So how are we sure that Joe will take this limousine in particular?" came Mia's muffled voice from under the hood.

"I've already talked with Richey and he said that Joe always checks in with him every time he needs to use one of the cars. Richey said that he would just make sure that he gave Joe these keys" Charlotte said as she jingled the keys in the air.

"Sounds like a plan," Mia said before stretching out her hand to Charlotte, "give me the bucket."

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_Half an hour later..._

"I trust everything is prepared for my outing this mourning?" Clarisse asked her assistant as she descended the stair case.

"Of course, Your Majesty. Joseph is waiting for your just outside." Charlotte informed.

Clarisse stopped about five steps from the bottom but her friend strode on. "Joseph?" she asked nonchalantly...or at least what she thought was nonchalant.

"Why, yes Your Majesty, he insisted on being the one to accompany you." Charlotte said turning to face her Queen.

"Oh, did he? He didn't happen to mention why...did he?" Clarisse asked, trying not to seem nearly as curios as she really was.

"No...he didn't say. But my personal opinion is that he likes it when he can personally assure your safety."

"What makes you think that he would feel the need to secure MY safety?" Clarisse asked some what defensively.

Charlotte looked confused, "With all do respect, Your Majesty" she began, "isn't that what you pay him to do?"

Clarisse just looked at her for a short while, "yes, I mean of course. I was just thinking..."

Charlotte's eyebrows rose and her head tilted slightly forward as she waited for her Queen to finish her sentence.

"Oh, never mind." Clarisse said with a wave of the hand as she walked down the last five steps and headed for the door.

The doormen (Clarisse knew that one was Nathan and the other was Dominic but she often forgot which was which) opened the double doors that were before her. Joseph could then be seen standing just beside the passenger seat door (which she had often heard Mia refer to as "Shotgun", but Clarisse never dared ask her why she gave it that name) with his hands clasped neatly in front of him. He was wearing his usual black attire, and with his trademark sunglasses covering his eyes he looked extremely professional...as usual.

"Your Majesty" he greeted with a slight bow once she was near enough.

He opened the door and she sat gracefully inside.

The drive to the Mritz Shores was actually quite a bit longer then she had initially counted for. And for the most part, there was little conversation. Finally, they arrived at the beach just barely under an hour after they first set out.

Joseph got out first and walked over to open the door for his passenger. He did this and she emerged from her seat and smiled when she caught a glance of the sandy shores and crashing waves. He allowed himself to smile slightly as he watched her take a deep breath in...and then let it out in a content sigh. At that moment, the look on her face convinced him that she could not be happier with her circumstances at that very moment. The smile on her lips was one of utter content and she slipped out of her shoes and stepped forward a few feet until she could feel the sand beneath her bare feet. Joseph slipped two of his fingers into her delicate shoes and picked up the two high heels by the spine of the shoe and let them hang loosely at his side. He then followed her as she began her stroll across the sand.

They hadn't even been walking for three minutes before Clarisse told Joseph (for the hundredth time) that she would much rather him walk beside her, and of course, Joseph did as requested and was soon at her side.

They simply walked along the edge of the sand and they exchanged a few words for about ten minutes or so. As Joseph gazed at the beautiful horizon Clarisse studied the dimples in the sand. She wondered how many other couples had done this very same thing over the years. Clarisse mentally shook herself, since when did she consider Joseph and herself to be a couple? She didn't have the time to answer herself because Joseph's voice interrupted her thoughts.

"You're beautiful" he said.

She stopped walking and turned to face him. He was staring her in the eye and the look on his face told her that he had obviously been noting her beauty long before he said anything about it.

Clarisse couldn't help but blush, "Joseph, your above all others flatter me far too often then necessary."

"Well forgive me Your Majesty, but I'm the sort of man that...when I see a flower, I can't help but smell it...and when I see beauty...I can't help but declare it" he charmed.

Clarisse smiled, quite flattered by what Joseph had to say. "You sap" she said as her blush intensified.

Joseph noticed as her face reddened and he was pleased with the reaction he was causing, therefore, he continued in his flattery. "That's true, I am a sap. But I'm also honest...and I have been told to be an excellent judge in such matters so I have to say...I've never seen such beauty so fine."

Her smile grew as she placed her hand gently on his cheek, "Thank you, Joseph. You really are too kind"

She then turned and began walking again and he followed with a smile. A few steps later, Joseph pinched her palm lightly between his thumb and forefinger, 'testing the waters' as they say. He pretended not to notice when her breath caught in her throat at the sudden contact. She looked up at him and he gave her a look that asked if he had crossed a line. He was relieved when she smiled at him and slid her hand into his. And like that they walked...hand in hand.

They stayed that way for quite a while as they walked. At one point, Joseph veered a little too far to the side and Clarisse pulled him with a gasp as water covered the place that his feet would have been other wise. After Joseph regained his footing he looked at the woman at his side.

"What was that for?" he asked.

"The wave nearly got your feet."

He looked as the wave crept back into the ocean, "Oh, I wouldn't have minded that much."

"You wouldn't have?" she asked.

Joseph shook his head, "no" he said.

Then he placed her shoes gently beside her and strode out to the water's edge. He turned around, "See?" he said as he held out his arms.

"Oh, Joseph don't. You'll get wet and then you'll soak the seat in the car. Just, just come back here" she pleaded.

"It's alright Clarisse, the Good Lord made me water proof for just such an occasion." Joseph said with a grin.

At that very moment a wave came crashing down and Clarisse watched as water splashed up behind him from the impact and the water absolutely soaked everything from Joseph's knees and below. Clarisse's hand flew over her mouth as she tried ever so hard not to burst into hysterical laughter. Joseph was still standing there with his arms extended slightly from his sides. His eyes were closed and he shook his head lightly at the irony.

"You know..." he began, "I really had no intention of getting wet."

At that, Clarisse lost it. She broke out in laughter at the sight she was witnessing. When the wave had finally drifted back into the ocean, Joseph's feet were buried in wet sand from the wave's undertow.

"Oh Joseph, look out!" Clarisse said through the laughter as another, even larger wave surrounded Joseph's body. This time the wave covered his entire upper thigh and even made it half way to his waist.

If it weren't for the sand beneath her, one might have half expected Clarisse to be rolling on the floor judging by how hard she was laughing. And it just made it worse when Joseph simply replied, "Ok, I think I've had enough. I'm ready to come out now."

Clarisse grabbed Joseph's now wet hand to help him emerge from the water and was very careful not to get too close to the water's edge. Joseph bent down and rung out the ends of his pants as Clarisse continued in her giggle fit.

"I'm assuming you found that somewhat amusing?" he asked.

Clarisse's hand was over her mouth and she tried to calm herself, "I'm sorry, Joseph. It's just that the look on your face when that first wave struck was positively adorable. I wish I had a camera."

"Uhhu, well...I'm glad you got such a kick out of it." He said as he picked up her shoes again and began walking.

Their walk continued and Clarisse tried to ignore the noise of swishing water that was coming from Joseph's shoes with each step. They went on that way for a least an hour and neither had noted the time or the weather. As they had been walking, the clouds had come in rather quickly and it didn't take long for Clarisse to note the drop of water that landed on her arm. She held out her hand, palm up, and squinted up at the sky.

"What is it, my dear?" Joseph asked, though to be honest, he wasn't really concerned with what she was doing, he was mostly curios as to why she had let go of his hand.

"I think I just felt a rain drop" Clarisse said, not even making note of the fact that Joseph just called her "my dear".

Joseph looked at his watch, "Well that can't be the case. Otherwise the rain would be a good three hours early."

"Well that depends, did you check the local weather, or the forecast for Mritz?"

Joseph stared at her as he thought about it, "You bring up a fine point." At that moment another drop landed on his head and Joseph looked up towards the sky. Sure enough, rain began to come down rapidly from the sky.

"Oh, quick Joseph, let's get back to the car" said Clarisse as she held her hand above her head and started walking in the proper direction.

But Joseph had a better idea. He grabbed her hand and forced her to turn and face him again. "I don't think so. If I had to get wet then so do you" he said.

"Oh, no Joseph. We'll catch a cold. Come on, let's just go back to the car and head home" Clarisse said, wanting so much to get out of the rain.

Joseph dropped her shoes on the ground and took her other hand. He took a moment to note her appearance. Her eyes were squinting slightly as the rain continued to fall on her face, the makeup beneath her eyes was starting to smear but only slightly and Joseph had to look closely even to notice, and her once perfect hair now looked notably darker and was starting to curl more from the humidity and there was one strand that curled along her cheek bone just below her left eye. He drew her closer and placed a hand lovingly on her cheek. With his thumb he brushed away that one strand then leaned in and placed a small kiss were the hair had once been.

"Dance with me" he said.

She merely looked at him, "You want to dance now?"

"Mhmm" he nodded. "Here, now, on the beach, in the rain, with me."

"We don't have any music."

"I didn't even notice" he said smoothly before taking her into his arms and leading her in a slow dance.

She leaned the side of her forehead against his chin and closed her eyes, willing her conscience not to ruin the moment. For once she wanted to just enjoy being with this man, and put any worries or concerns away. And that's precisely what she did.

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There you go guys. I really enjoyed writing this chapter and I am curios to find if you enjoyed reading it. So please, put my mind at ease and leave me a review telling me what you did like and even what you didn't like, because those are the kind of reviews that are most helpful to me. Thank you guys...

Monker


	10. Car Trouble

Alright guys, here is the next chapter. I really hope you like it!

Deep breath in...deep breath out...here we go...

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"Alright, I am officially freaking out now" Joseph's second in command, Shades, said as he walked into the security room. "Charlotte's notes said that Her Majesty was only to be gone for two hours! Sense they left this morning nearly FOUR hours have gone by!"

"Hello to you too, sir" Sinatra greeted as he turned around in his seat to look at the panic-stricken Shades.

"And what's worse," Shades continued as he paced backand forth in front of the three men who were on duty in the security room, "Joseph wont answer his cell phone! Why does the man carry a cell phone if he never puts the thing to his ear?"

Shades stopped pacing and turned to face Dominic with his hands on his hips, "can you tell I'm worried?"

"Not at all, sir. You hide it very well" Dominic replied jokingly.

Shades ran his fingers through his hair, "What on earth could they be doing that Joseph would turn off his cell phone for?"

The other three men looked at each other and smiled but Dean was the one to actually say anything, "Do you actually want us to answer that, sir?"

"Oh, please!" Shades waved his hand at Dean as if to say that what he was suggesting was total nonsense. "Joe hasn't made a pass for her in well over a month" he said.

"So? You don't think that's going to stop him do you?" Sinatra asked. "He's been crazy for her for years now! And if I know Joe as well as I think I do, he's charming that woman even as we speak."

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Joseph inhaled deeply as his dance with Clarisse continued. He took a brief moment to thank God in Heaven for allowing Joseph this moment, indeed this was a dance that he would not soon forget. Joseph smiled as he felt Clarisse copy his actions and also take in a deep breath. It was clear that they were both enjoying this moment, which was a relief to Joseph. Finally, he was able to be with Clarisse instead of being in the presence of Her Royal Majesty. This was the kind of moment that people only dreamt about, and here he was, experiencing the real thing...nothing could be better then this. Joseph pulled away slightly when he felt Clarisse's whole body shiver.

"Are you alright, darling?" he asked as he brushed some of her stray strands of hair back into place.

"I'm fine, just a bit chilly is all" she responded.

He smiled and nodded before pulling her closer once more. His smile broadened when he felt her nuzzle into his neck the way you would expect a cat to do. He brought his hand up to stroke the back of her neck and the tips of her hair.

"This is nice" she breathed.

"Mhmm" Joseph hummed in agreement.

He pulled back again and looked her in the eyes. She stared back at him, not really knowing what he was going to do. Then it was clear to her as he leaned in closer. As he drew closer she couldn't help but have that terrible thought _'I shouldn't be doing this, I shouldn't be doing this! Nothing but disaster with come from this! You're going to hurt the poor man again! Stop it while you may! You shouldn't be doing this!'_ But Clarisse shoved all of those thoughts out of her head and allowed Joseph to close the distance between them.

When the contact was finally made neither could believe its effect. If Clarisse had opened her eyes and taken a look around, she would have felt certain to see rain drops frozen and extended in mid air for at that moment...time stood still. The kiss was soft and gentle...and SO far from demanding. Clarisse had never felt anything like it and couldn't help but mentally kick herself for shivering again and causing Joseph to pull away in concern.

She watched as he took a deep breath before saying anything, apparently it had affected him as much as it had her.

"Come; let's get you out of this rain. I've kept you out here for far too long already."

Joseph then took off his jacket and held it above her head in effort to protect her from any more rain. And then the two of them set out towards the car, which gave Clarisse plenty of time to contemplate what she had just done. Surely something that felt that wonderful couldn't be half as bad as she had thought. No one had ever been able to cause this kind of feeling in her before, not even when Rupert was still alive. How was it possible that this man could hold such power over her? The more and more she thought about the kiss, the more she wanted it to happen again. For a brief moment she even considered turning to Joseph and doing it herself right then and there...but her conscience got the better of her. She couldn't allow herself to think that way. She had been foolish to allow the kiss to happen in the first place! She can't be involved with a man right now! Why couldn't she just remember that? She was being so cruel to this man by giving him false hope like that all of the time. And now she is just going to turn around and break his heart...again. Oh, why did she let him kiss her? How could she bee so foolish?

Clarisse looked up and saw the limousine in sight. She jumped sky high and clasped her arms around Joseph's waist when she heard the large clap of thunder behind her. He smiled down at her from her reaction and wrapped an arm around her.

"We could run the rest of the way from here" he suggested.

She merely nodded her head in respond and he brought his arm from around her back and clasped her hand.

"Come on then" he said.

And the two of them took off running. Once they reached the car Joseph opened the door and Clarisse sat down inside. Before he closed the door he looked at Clarisse's bare feet.

"Oh, darling" he said over the sound of the rain, "I forgot your shoes back on the beach."

Just then there was a large crack of thunder and Clarisse jumped upon hearing it. "Never mind the shoes. Just get in the car" she said with equal volume.

Joseph nodded and closed the door. It wasn't long before she saw him clime into the front seat and close the door once his legs were safe inside. He glanced behind him and chuckled at the dripping woman who was seated at the back of the limo.

"Well you're no better" she said as she wrapped her arms around her chest and shivered once more.

Joseph turned on the car and then turned the heat as warm as it could go. "Hopefully it will warm up here in a bit" he said. And then began to pull out of the parking lot and onto the road.

They had only been driving for about 5 minutes when Joseph noticed something wrong with the car. Their speed was decreasing even though he was still pushing the acceleration. Deciding he would rather not breakdown in the middle of the road, Joseph pulled the car over to a grassy aria and put the car in park.

Clarisse had been in her own little world but was snapped back to reality when she noticed that the car had almost stopped moving.

"What's going on, Joseph?" she asked.

He was about to clime out of the cab but stopped to inform her, "I'm not sure, but I'm trying to find out."

Then he exited the car and walked to the front of it. Clarisse's view of him was cut off when he raised the hood of the car to look inside. Clarisse just sat there for a while and waited for about twenty seconds until she saw him shove the hood back into place and then was soon back in his seat. He turned the key in the ignition a few times but his efforts were in vain...the engine just didn't want to start.

"What's wrong?" Clarisse finally asked.

Joseph sighed and turned around, "Apparently our friend Richey messed up because this car is lacking the proper amount of gasoline."

"How much does it have?"

"None" Joseph said.

"What are we going to do? From what I remember, the nearest gas station is almost nine miles away" Clarisse said.

"Perhaps I could walk up the road and find that gas station and bring back some gasoline" Joseph suggested.

Just then there was another clasp of thunder and Clarisse jumped.

"I don't like that idea" she said bluntly.

Joseph chuckled slightly and got out of the car. At first, Clarisse thought that he had gone on and done it anyway. But then she saw the door next to her open and he came to sit by her side.

"I have another plan" he said bringing out his cell phone and holding down the number two on his speed dial.

"Who are you calling?" Clarisse asked in a whisper so as not to disrupt the phone call.

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"Charlotte, could you please make sure that these letters get mailed?" Mia asked politely.

"Oh course, Your Highness" Charlotte replied before her hand went to her belt and pulled the vibrating cell phone to her ear.

"Hello?"

"_Yes, Charlotte? This is Joe," _

Charlotte motioned for Mia to listen, so the young woman leaned her head closer and they both listened to the voice coming from Charlotte's cell phone.

"Oh, hey Joe. Is something the matter? Shades is going out of his mind wondering what has happened to you two. Are you alright?" Charlotte asked.

"_Yes we're fine but apparently we are having a bit of car trouble and I am unable to get the car moving again. I need you to send someone down here to either restore this vehicle or provide another ride for Her Majesty."_

Mia grinned and covered her mouth to remain quiet.

Charlotte also grinned but made sure that her smile was not noticeable in her voice, "Of course. Where are you now?"

"_I'm on the side of the road. We were on our way back to the Palace but only made it a few miles from the beach. There aren't any visible road signs that I can see but if you have them drive to the beach they will be sure to notice us when they get close enough. Just send someone as soon as you can."_

"Consider it done" Charlotte assured, then flipped her phone closed and she shared a laugh Mia.

"Well," Mia said, "I was hoping that they would get stranded at the beach but I guess my math can't always be right."

"Well I think you still did a fine job, Princess. I wouldn't have known how much gasoline to leave in the car, so you've already done more then I could have."

"Oh, you're too kind" Mia pretended to act flattered and she and Charlotte both shared another laugh.

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Joseph hung up on his side of the line and turned to look at Clarisse.

"Well?" she asked, "are they going to send someone?"

"No, my dear. They've decided to leave us out here for good" Joseph teased.

For a moment Clarisse's expression was one of shock, but then that gave away and a scowl took its place. She slapped him on the arm.

"That wasn't funny" she said.

"Then I'd say that your sense of humor has lessened if you didn't find that funny" he stared at her for a few seconds and almost dared her to keep a strait face.

Alas...she could not do it. Her scowl faded and her lips turned up in a grin, "Alright, maybe it was a little funny."

Joseph chuckled and leaned back in his seat. He rested his arm on the back of the seat and let his hand fall to the base of Clarisse's neck where he then proceeded to tickle her skin lightly with the tips of his fingers. It was not an annoying sort of tickle, like one that your older sibling may have attacked you with growing up. It was a soothing sort of tickle, one that would cause goose bumps to spread all throughout your body if it lasted long enough. It was the sort of tickle that, if it was done in the right place and by the right person, would feel far better then any massage one could ever endure. And that is how it was to Clarisse at that moment. Someway, somehow, Joseph seemed to have found Clarisse's special spot without even putting forth any form of effort. It was an action that seemed impossibly natural to him and Clarisse couldn't explain how or why it was so easy for him. But that didn't mater; she was in no mood to go searching for answers. She was enjoying the sensation he was causing far too much for something like that.

Joseph didn't know exactly what kind of sensation he was causing, but she seemed to be enjoying it. And the truth was, he had only half realized he was doing it in the first place. It was a subconscious action for him. The only thing that made him realize he was doing it was when he noticed Clarisse's head drop slightly to allow him better access. He realized what she was trying to say, so his fingers ventured further up her neck.

What Joseph didn't realize is that when he went to go put his cell phone away, he missed his pant pocket, so his cell phone had been lying on the seat just behind him. And when he leaned back in his seat and first began stroking Clarisse, he had sat on his phone and hence pushed and held the speed dial two button (you see, unlike Charlotte, Joseph did not have a flip phone so his number key was accessible even when not in use). So Joseph had, unknowingly, recalled Charlotte's cell phone. And because the phone was not being held up to either's ear, Joseph nor Clarisse could hear Charlotte's voice answer the line.

Clarisse moaned quietly as Joseph added his other hand into the mix so then all of his fingers (not including the thumbs) were lightly going up and down Clarisse's neck in a slow rhythm.

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Back in her suite, Mia stared on as Charlotte repeated her greeting over and over again. Finally Mia grabbed the phone from Charlotte's hand and held it to her ear. She heard the sound of someone moaning gently. She pulled the phone away from her ear and looked at its sides. She found the volume control and turned it up louder then placed the phone back to her ear. She heard something that she thought was someone speaking but she still could not hear it clearly.

"Is there any way for this to get louder?" Mia dropped the phone from her ear and studied its key pad.

Charlotte took it from her hands, "it has a speaker phone" she said and she held down the proper button and soon the sounds coming from the phone were amplified and the voices could be heard clearly.

Mia looked at the phone, then at Charlotte and mouthed "Cool". Then both women listened intently to what was coming from the phone.

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As Clarisse was enjoying the sensation, something in the back of her mind clicked and she brought her head up quickly, which was not a very good idea because it gave her an instant headache.

"No, Joseph. You need to stop" she said.

"What?" he asked completely confused.

"This needs to stop."

Joseph just stared at her with his eyebrows low in concern. "What happened on the beach just now," he said, "you're not regretting it, are you?"

She looked at him sadly.

He shook his head, "I don't understand."

She sighed and rubbed the bridge of her nose, no doubt this was going to hurt him.

"I thought things were going well" he said, still utterly confused.

"They were, Joseph...they were" she said as she gently touched his cheek.

"Then why are you doing this?"

She sighed again and pulled her hand off his cheek, "Because," she said, "This can't happen. You and I...can't happen."

The look on Joseph's face resembled that of a small child who did not understand why they were being punished. It was a look that broke Clarisse's heart.

"Why?"

"Because, I'm in no place to have a romantic relationship with anyone. It's not really you...and it's not really me...it's them."

Joseph still looked confused.

Clarisse let out a hopeless sigh, "I'm afraid you wouldn't understand."

"Then make me, Clarisse. Make me understand. Please, I beg you!" he pleaded in the pain of being broken.

The look on his face caused tears to well up in Clarisse's eyes. "It's the people of Genovia" she said, "They're not ready to see me in a relationship right now."

"Well who cares about that?" as soon as the words were out of his mouth, Joseph knew that was not the right approach to take.

"I care, Joseph! It's my job to care!" she answered angrily.

Joseph fell silent and looked at the ground for a moment. Then he raised his head and looked her in the eyes again. "You're right" he said, "I don't understand. I can't understand why you won't do this one thing for yourself. I mean, I know that you wish to be selfless but...will you not draw the line even at love?"

"Joseph, I am under constant surveillance!"

At first Joseph found it pointless for her to be telling him this. For the most part, he was the one providing this surveillance. But he still let her continue.

"No matter which way I turn there is ALWAYS at least one pair of eyes watching my every move! So what do you think will happen when the country sees me gallivanting this way and that with some man? What do you think the people of Genovia would say!"

"'Good for her'?" Joseph suggested.

"Oh, really now Joseph! Try to act serious for this ONE moment please?"

"I am being serious! Clarisse, this country is full of people who love you, they adore you, they want what's best for you!"

"Oh, and what would that be? Exactly what IS best for me, Joseph?"

Joseph's eyes zigzagged for a split second on the floor and he thought of an answer before raising his head and shouting, "I AM!"

Clarisse's expression changed. She was blown away with the idea of his answer. Her face changed from a frustrated scowl to a face of contemplation as she considered what Joseph just said.

He went on in a softer tone, "I am, Clarisse. I'm what's best for you." He pause briefly before continuing, "As much as you and some parliament members hate to admit it...you're just a woman" he spoke this last part earnestly. "And all responsibilities and...political roles aside, ultimately...you are just a woman. A woman...who deserves to be loved, and cherished, and adored just like any other woman on this earth does. And I am willing to do that for you, Clarisse. I am willing to love you, and cherish you, and adore you! I already do and have for years! Why can't you just realize that?"

Joseph looked down after saying these words in earnest and stared at the floor again. He couldn't let this happened, he was loosing her again, he had to do something. He sighed; maybe this really was supposed to be the end of it. He looked back up at her and saw that she too was staring at the ground.

"Clarisse, look at me" he said.

She did as he requested and looked at him.

"If you can look me in the eye, right now and tell me that you really don't care for me...And when I kissed you on the beach just now, if you can honestly tell me that you felt nothing in that...then...I'll stop chasing after you, once and for all. You will never be bothered by me again. If you can look me in the eye...right now...and honestly tell me...that you don't love me...then I will end it, right here, right now. Can you tell me that?"

He held her gaze intensely and without so much as a blink. And she stared back as she thought about it. At last his deep gaze was too much for her and she tilted her head slightly to the side and stared at the wood paneling that was on certain arias of the limousine as she thought hard about what he just said. Tears were welling up in her eyes as she shook her head lightly.

"No," she squeaked just above a whisper as he chin began to quiver and the first tear slid down her cheek. "I can't tell you that," she said and pinched her lips together in effort to fight off the tears that were now spilling out.

"I can't tell you that, Joseph" she looked back at him and saw that his eyes were closed and he was taking a deep breath in and then let it out in a relieved sigh. She leaned back and rested her head against the seat behind her.

She closed her eyes, "God help me, but I think..." she opened her eyes and looked at him again, "...I think I'm in love with you."

He matched her position by placing his head on the seat also but still looking at her. His first tear slid down his cheek until it was lost in the maze of hairs that formed his beard.

He sighed another sigh, "You have no idea how relieved I am to hear you say that." He placed a hand lovingly on her cheek and wiped the strokes of tears from under her eye. "I love you, Clarisse" he said.

She sniffled, "I love you, too."

He grabbed the back of her head and leaned in to place a kiss on her forehead. Then he touched both their foreheads together and continued to look her in the eyes. He let his hand drop to her lower thigh just above the knee as his other arm was resting on the seat behind them and letting its hand rest on top of her head and play with her hair.

She had one of her hands gripping his shirt and the other resting on his shoulder and stroking the back of his neck with her nails much like he had done to her earlier, but every once and a while she would bring that hand up to tug on and play with his ear.

And like that they sat, with their foreheads touching and looking strait at each other. And they both silently decided that nothing could be more perfect.

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When things grew silent, Charlotte quietly closed her phone and looked at Mia. Apparently it was as touching to her as it was to Charlotte because Mia too had wet eyes. Mia looked at her and they both smiled.

"Finally!" Charlotte said.

Mia dried her tears and watched as Charlotte did the same. Then Mia said, "Mission accomplished" and she and Charlotte shared a high-five.

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There you go my readers, that was the climax of the story. There will be more soon I promise. But please leave me a review to encourage me to write more.

**Author's Note:** I was just informed recently that all of my mechanical references in this chapter and then one before it were completely inaccurate. So before I get in trouble by all of you mechanics out there, I would like to say I'm sorry but what I wrote about the car was wrong and Mia and Charlotte could not have removed gasoline from the car's hood. This just goes to show that I am totally ignorant when it comes to cars. But I ask that you use your imagination for that part of the story because after all...it is fiction.

--Monker


	11. Good Mornin' Life

A good ten minutes went by and both Joseph and Clarisse remained in their same positions. Finally, Joseph's senses caught up to him when he realized that it had been fifteen minutes since the car had last had any heat. And the cold was beginning to get to him due to his wet clothes, and he could only assume that Clarisse was feeling the same way. He looked over at her and saw that Clarisse had her eyes closed. Was she asleep?

"Clarisse?" he asked gently, not wishing to wake her if in fact she did happen to fall asleep.

She shifted gently then opened her eyes.

"Mhmm?" she replied.

"Are you getting cold?"

She nodded slightly, "a little" she said.

Joseph broke their contact and slid off of the seat. He knelt before her and opened a small storage unit beneath her feet that was built into the seat and then proceeded to search through it. He pushed past the emergency kit, the portable tool kit, and the first aid kit. Then his arm emerged from the cabinet with two blankets, he reached in again and pulled out a small pillow, the kind that airlines will often provide for their passengers. Then he closed the small door and set all three items beside him. He unfolded one of the blankets and shook out the wrinkles. Then he folded it in half and held it in one hand. Joseph wrapped both arms around Clarisse and passed one of the corners over to his other hand, then he pulled both corners over and around her shoulders so that the blanket covered her entire back and torso.

Clarisse lifted her hands, took the corners from Joseph, and held them in place.

Joseph then grabbed the other two items and stood (while being mindful of the low ceilings). He went to take his seat again but stopped for a moment. His cell phone was lying on the seat.

'_How did that get there?'_ he wondered.

But not wanting to search for an answer, Joseph merely picked up the small phone, made sure that it was turned off, and placed it back in his pocket. He then took a seat next to Clarisse, who had been quietly watching him the whole time. He placed the pillow on his lap and patted it gently.

Clarisse understood what he meant and laid on her side, using his lap as a pillow. Then Joseph opened the other blanket and laid it across her lower half (because the first blanket was too short and only covered her torso) and took great care to be positive that her feet were covered. Once Joseph was satisfied that her entire body (except her head, of course) was protected by the warm blanket, Joseph brushed a few more stray strands of hair back into place. Then he leaned downward and gave her a soft kiss. He enjoyed the fact that he could now kiss her any time he wanted to. It was a freedom he intended to exercise every moment he could spare.

He watched as she closed her eyes again and sighed. A few moments went by and he thought that she had fallen asleep. But this theory was vetoed when Clarisse suddenly began to speak.

"Joseph, tell me about your childhood" she said, eyes still closed.

Joseph was startled at first by this random request but soon replied. "What would you like to know?" he asked.

"Anything," was her reply. "Were you a good student?" She raised an eye brow and glanced at him through barely cracked eye lids.

Joseph thought about it momentarily, "It depends on who you were comparing me to" he said. "I was the smartest among my friends for sure." He paused, "But if you were comparing me to Jeffery Rawlings...then that would be a completely different story."

Clarisse chuckled, "who's Jeffery Rawlings?" she asked.

"Jeffery Rawlings was absolutely the smartest person I ever met."

Clarisse continued to chuckle.

"I remember once in the third grade spelling bee...I was the fourth name to be called, my word was 'command'...I spelt it correctly."

"Good for you."

"Yes, thank you. Anyway, Jeffery comes up and his word was...I think that they purposefully gave him a harder one merely because of his reputation...anyway; his word was 'diffidence'. And this was his exact response...I kid you not..." Joseph cleared his throat, "...'diffidence...d-i-f-f-i-d-e-n-c-e...diffidence, which means the lack of self-confidence or highly shy, taken from the Latin word 'defidens' meaning bashful'"

Clarisse burst out laughing, "He gave the definition?"

Joseph nodded, "Both in English and in Latin."

Clarisse let her laughter subside before asking her next question. "Who was your first crush?"

"Ahh..." Joseph sighed. He smiled while leaning his head back and scratching his neck, "How did I know that was going to be your next question?" he asked.

"Because you're smart" she patted him on his arm, "now come on...what was her name?"

Joseph rubbed his eyebrow before answering, "Her name was Samantha Woods. And I had a thing for her all throughout high school."

Clarisse grinned, "Was she pretty?"

"Beautiful! For the longest time I thought she was the prettiest thing that ever walked the planet. But that theory didn't last forever, because I soon forgot about her and then...then I met you." He leaned down and gave her another kiss.

She accepted it before smiling and saying "is it possible for you to go twenty minutes without flattering me in some way?"

"Possible..." he smiled then tapped her nose, "...but not likely."

She laughed softly, "So tell me more about this Samantha person."

Joseph sighed as he tried to think back to high school. "Well," he began, "I suppose you can thank her that I now know English because the only reason why I took English as my foreign language was because she was in the class. She was excellent at speaking English, but I took some time before I got the hang of it. I used to joke and tell people that Spanish was my foreign language and sarcasm was my native tongue."

Clarisse chuckled, "so apparently your wit did not come merely by the years."

"No indeed. And I even considered joining the football team just so that I could see her at the games."

"Oh, Joseph!" Clarisse scolded "You had a crush on a cheerleader? How typical."

Joseph held up a finger, "On the contrary m' lady, Samantha was on the team."

Clarisse's jaw dropped, "no" she said in disbelief.

Joseph nodded, "It's true. All of the guys on the team were excellent with the catching and the throwing and the running...but when it came to kicking...they couldn't seem to get their foot on the ball, so Samantha was recruited from the soccer team to be their starting kicker and punter."

Clarisse stared at Joseph for a moment before asking slowly; "you...had a crush...on a football player?" she ended in a grin.

Joseph smirked slightly, closed his eyes, and nodded his head.

Clarisse broke into hysterical laughter, much like she did when the first wave struck Joseph just an hour or so ago.

"Alright, I think that's enough reminiscing for the day" Joseph said as Clarisse continued to laugh.

"Oh, no Joseph!" she said through the laughter, "Please, tell me more."

And so he did, and he continued to tell about himself for nearly an hour until a car was spotted around the bend and Joseph realized that it had come to take Clarisse back to the palace. Joseph had planned to stay and perhaps help work on the broken vehicle but Clarisse would have none of it. She said that there was no sense in him sticking around if the car was merely lacking gasoline to begin with. When he still hesitated she made it a Royal order for him to obey her so that he could get home and change out of his soaking wet clothes.

The ride back to the palace was quiet for the most part after Shades finished his brief scolding of Joe and his "lack of cell phone usage", as Shades referred to it. And no one seemed to notice when Joseph silently placed his hand over his Queen's and began to rub it smoothly, he was rewarded with a knowing smile and a quick glance.

When they arrived back at the palace Joseph wished he had had a camera. The looks on everyone's faces when they saw their Monarch and her Head of Security dripping wet was absolutely priceless! Those who were the nearest merely shot confused glances in Joseph's and Clarisse's direction before pretending not to have noticed, while those who were a ways away leaned closer to one another and shared inquiring whispers. Clarisse was mortified by it all but Joseph was enjoying it to its fullest, though he didn't dare show it on his face.

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Charlotte walked slowly down the large staircase. Upon her arrival in the foyer, Charlotte first noticed two things; one, no one was working; they all seemed to be preoccupied with something else. The fact was they had all been distracted by the entrance of a certain person...or persons to be exact. The second thing was, when she noticed who the two people were, Charlotte was confused as to why her Queen was walking through the lobby dripping wet, and without her shoes. But she didn't wish to intervene on Her Majesty's personal affairs. And the truth was, it wasn't any of Charlotte's business why Her Majesty's shoes were missing.

Charlotte finished her descent down the last few steps and was soon at her Queen's side. "How did you enjoy your visit to the beach, Your Majesty?" Charlotte asked politely.

Clarisse continued to look straight ahead, "I enjoyed it just fine Charlotte, thank you."

Charlotte glanced over at Joseph as if to ask him the same question. He merely replied with a slight nod.

"Charlotte, I'm going up to my rooms to get changed out of these wet clothes and into some fresh ones. Would you be so kind as to send up some tea at your earliest convenience?" Clarisse asked as she began to climb the staircase.

"Of course, Your Majesty" Charlotte bowed slightly though Clarisse's back was already turned away from her.

Joseph watched from the bottom of the stairs until Clarisse was completely out of sight. Once he could no longer see her he turned to his left and was met by a somewhat irritating grin from Charlotte.

"What?" he asked.

She continued to grin, "So, how did you two...get along?" Charlotte asked.

"'Get along'? What on earth is that supposed to mean?" he asked as he began to walk away.

"Come on Joe, tell me what happened."

Joseph continued to walk away.

"Will you ever tell me?" Charlotte asked.

Joseph turned around and hiked his shoulders, "Maybe...someday."

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That night Joseph laid flat on his back with his eyes wide open. He could hardly believe the things that had happened through the day. He had been waiting so long for this day. In fact, so many years had gone by that Joseph had totally lost count; he felt for sure that only God Himself could remember the proper amount. And now, after so many years of waiting and longing, he could finally call her his own. He could hardly wait for the next day to come merely so that he could awaken with the thought of _'she's mine'_ securely fixed in his mind.

When the morning finally did come, Joseph practically sprung from his bed. It was amazing! Even at his age; the thought of her still didn't cease to put a spring in his step! He was dressed and ready for work in a mater of moments. As he walked down the hallways, headed towards the security room, Joseph whistled a merry melody...even though he wasn't exactly sure from where in his memory it came.

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"Where is Her Majesty's tea?" Pricilla asked as she frantically searched the tray that Olivia was holding in her hands. "Her Majesty always has Tea in the mornings before anything else. Where is it?"

Olivia also looked at the tray in search of the missing drink.

Pricilla sighed, "That's it then! We're through!" she threw her hands into the air in helplessness. "Her Majesty is always a bit grumpy in the mornings, now this is just going to make things worse!"

But Pricilla's panicking was delayed when she heard the door open from behind her.

"Good morning, ladies!" Her Majesty Queen Clarisse said cheerfully as she tightened her robe and exited her bedroom. "How are you both feeling this morning?" she asked as she clasped her hands in front of her with a smile.

Pricilla hesitated briefly before replying, "We're well, Your Majesty. And yourself?"

"I feel wonderful, Pricilla. And thank you for asking." Clarisse leaned slightly to one side in effort to see Olivia who was standing a little behind Pricilla. "Oh Olivia, you dear! Thank you so much for bringing me my tea."

"Actually, Your Majesty, it's a bit hectic this morning in the kitchen so your tea wasn't exactly prepared in time." Olivia spoke cautiously.

Clarisse thought about it for a split second and then waved her hand at Olivia as if to dismiss her worrying. "No matter," she said "perhaps some will be ready for me when I go down for breakfast."

Clarisse walked over to the bathroom and said over her shoulder "I think I will wear my light yellow suit today, Pricilla." Then all of the sudden she stopped dead in her tracks and slowly turned around, "It's been quite a while since either of you have had some time off, hasn't it?"

The ladies maids both nodded their heads but stayed silent.

"Alright then, hurry and help me get ready for breakfast and then you may have the rest of the day off" Clarisse said as she walked into the bathroom and shut the door behind her.

Pricilla stood still and stared at the door for a moment, "How do you explain that?" she asked before turning to face her friend again.

Olivia smiled and hiked her shoulders, "Joseph must've gotten to her."

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Joseph sat in his usual chair in the security room as he stared at the wall of screens. He had only moments ago finished a phone call to a local store to place an order on something he had in mind for Clarisse. He was assured that it would be delivered at the palace in a mater of hours. Joseph turned his head to the side when he heard the main entrance to the security room swing open. It was Sinatra, and he was waving a CD lightly in the air.

"Dean-y boy! Take a look at this!" Sinatra said as he tossed the CD lightly into Dean's lap.

Dean picked up the small case and read it aloud, "'The Best of Dean Martin: Platinum Edition'!" Dean flipped it over and began to silently read some of the songs it consisted of, "Oh my word! How did you find this?"

"I knew a guy who was related to a guy who dated a gal who worked at a place that just so happened to have it in stock. But that doesn't matter, friend! Put it in and crank it up! I wanna hear some music!" Sinatra said enthusiastically.

"Do you guys mind if we listen to this?" Dean asked the rest of the guys in the room. They all said that it would be fine, so Dean placed it in the CD player and pressed the play button.

The very first song was extremely chipper sounding and it had that 'big band feel' that you could often find in that style of music. As the sound of Dean Martin's rich voice flowed from the speakers, Joseph found himself tapping his toes and listening intently to the words. It was amazing how accurately they applied to that day.

_Good mornin' life_

_Good mornin' sun how are your skies above?_

_Gee its great to be alive and in love._

_Good mornin' life_

_Good mornin' birds sing out your happy tunes_

_Feels so good 'cause I'll be seeing her soon!_

_Last night she said she loved me_

_What a pity to part_

_I slept with both eyes open, waiting for today to start_

_Good mornin' life_

_Good mornin' world how are you happiness?_

_All at one I learn what livin' can be_

_Its life, it's free, it's someone waiting for me_

_Who'll someday be my wife good mornin' life!_

_Good mornin' life_

_Good mornin' life_

_Last night she said she loved me_

_What a pity to part_

_I slept with both eyes open, waiting for today to start_

_Good mornin' life_

_Good mornin' world how are you happiness?_

_All at one I learn what livin' can be_

_Its life, it's free, it's someone waitin' for me_

_Who'll someday be my wife! Good mornin' life!_

The song ended before Joseph even noticed it. He turned around in his chair to face the rest of the room instead of just the screens. "Hey, Dean...play that one again."

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_Later that day..._

Clarisse walked into her office and looked at the slightly large pink box that had been placed on her desk. "Charlotte, do you know who delivered this?" she asked "I don't remember ordering anything; I wonder what it could be." Clarisse sat down at the desk and removed her glasses to get a better look at the box.

"I didn't order anything, Your Majesty. But it must be safe to open. After all, it did make it pass security." Charlotte said.

Clarisse gave the mystery box one more look before untying the striped pink ribbon and pulling its top off. Inside there was something wrapped in tissue paper beneath a card of some kind. Clarisse put her reading glasses back on her face and read the card to herself.

'_A replacement pair for those which I lost.'_

Clarisse placed the card to the side and unwrapped the tissue paper to reveal a single pair of women's high heeled shoes...exactly her size, too.

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Alright guys, I am really sorry that I made you wait that long for an update. As this story is drawing to its end I am having larger and larger cases of writer's block to deal with. I would still really like to know what everyone thought about my chapter! Be honest!

Author's Note: The song was titled "Good Mornin' Life"—by Dean Martin. I highly recommend it to those who have never heard it. It's extremely catchy!

--Monker


	12. a Secret from the World

My dear faithful readers, forgive me for making you wait so long for an update (isn't it funny how so many writers are starting off their chapters by saying something similar to that?). I won't waist your time with excuses, I'll just get strait to the chapter but I must tell you this first...

**Something you should know**: I am jumping forward a few years. I felt like there wasn't much story left to tell that was placed in that time period. So this chapter (and the ones following it) is placed during the second Princess Diaries movie. "So, you know...just FYI" (there's a Tony Shalhoub quote for you, Misha. Name the movie!)

Author's Note: I don't ever remember there being elevators in the palace but I decided to add one. After all, it is the twenty-first century; you'd think they would have installed a few things like that here and there.

Anyway, on to the chapter!

Deep breath in...deep breath out...here we go...

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Joseph stood along the wall and watched the individual pairs that glided swiftly across the ballroom floor. Normally, such public formals didn't interest him in the least, but this one...this one was different. His eyes shifted over to the young lady he had grown to love like a daughter. Mia was positively glowing! And why shouldn't she? It was, after all, her ball. And on this night she was celebrating her twenty-first birthday. Joseph grinned slightly as he watched the young Princess wander toward the refreshment table. He wasn't surprised, she had been dancing with young men all night, even Joseph couldn't dance THAT much without needing some sort of beverage to 'wet his whistle'. But she didn't reach for a drink. She glanced suspiciously to the left...then right...and then slid a small fork full of cake into her mouth. Joseph giggled slightly at this before shaking his head at the girl's attempt to be sneaky.

Then Joseph's attention was directed to a young lady in a rather large hat who tapped Mia one the shoulder. Mia turned around and squealed that high pitched, juvenile squeal that she reserved for only the most 'incredibly surprising' moments (Joseph knew that squeal well). Then Mia embraced the large hatted girl in a big hug. They obviously knew each other but Joseph could not remember ever seeing that particular friend of Mia's before.

"Quite the turnout, wouldn't you say?"

The voice startled Joseph, but he knew it well. He turned around, "Sebastian, my friend! It's good to see you again!" Joseph gave the Prime Minister a firm hand shake and friendly pat on the arm. "How long has it been...a month?"

Sebastian nodded, "Yes, my family and I have been vacationing at the winter castle in Libit. I meant to speak to you earlier this evening but I had some introducing to do."

"Yes I saw you with the Princess talking to different members of Parliament."

Sebastian sighed, "yes, I'm afraid a may be wearing the young lady thin."

Joseph laughed; it was nice to have someone to talk to. For the most part, he had spent the evening observing as the guests interacted with one another. But that was alright, he was used to being in the shadows, watching crowds...it was what he spent over half of his life doing. His only regret was that he had been unable to steal Clarisse away long enough for a dance. She was too busy smiling and mingling.

But as his eyes drifted over to her, he noticed that Clarisse was relatively alone for once. Of course Charlotte was close at her side, but that didn't mater much to him. Clarisse was not engaging in any important political discussions with any important political figures for the first time that entire evening. She was just standing there next to Charlotte sipping a small glass of champagne. Joseph decided to seize the opportunity.

"Would you please excuse me?" he asked politely towards the man to his left.

Sebastian gave Joseph a slight bow of his head to indicate his approval and Joseph took off towards his girl.

Clarisse had turned slightly to face Charlotte as she answered a question. As Joseph approached he heard the last bit of it.

"Charlotte, this is a party. Let's leave all work related things for later, mhm? Why don't you go find yourself a dancing partner and have some fun?" Clarisse suggested with a kind smile.

Charlotte opened her mouth to protest but Joseph interrupted the conversation. He took Clarisse's hand in his, which startled her slightly until she turned to see who it was. When she saw that it was Joseph who had taken her hand she smiled brightly up at him.

He looked over at Charlotte, "Charlotte, would you mind if I stole this woman from you for a dance?"

Charlotte smiled at the couple and nodded her head, "Of course" she said.

Then Joseph shot Clarisse a grin and extended their joined hands slightly out in front of him as he led himself and Clarisse out onto the dance floor.

Charlotte grinned at them as they took their stance and began to move along to the music with their flawless dancing they were beginning to become known for. Her eyes shifted to the Prime Minister as he came to stand by her side. He was also watching as Her Majesty shared a dance with her Head of Security.

"Charlotte, inform me...have they gone public yet?" he asked.

Charlotte shook her head, "No, they still think it's their little secret from the world" Charlotte breathed a small laugh.

Sebastian chuckled his low, hearty chuckle that would bring a smile to anyone's face upon hearing it. "You must admit, it's a tad nerve wracking when the Ruler of our county and the one who keeps her safe are both so naïve to believe that no one notices."

Charlotte laughed softly, "That's true." After a few more seconds of watching them dance, Charlotte sighed, "They've got it bad, don't they?"

Sebastian's eyebrows rose as he nodded his head, "They most certainly do."

"Ah Sebastian, darling, there you are. I've been looking all over for you. Hello, Charlotte." Sheila Motez greeted with a smile as she approached them.

Charlotte smiled at the woman, "Hello, Sheila"

"My dear," Sebastian said, putting an arm around his wife, "we were merely musing about the couple mastering the dance floor out there." He nodded out towards the center of the ballroom.

Sheila nodded slowly, "Ahh, you must be referring to Joe and Her Majesty. Yes, I was just talking about it with Maria Dylogn and Eliza Bradshaw. We were trying to figure when the wedding will happen. Eliza said that it's not going to happen until after Princess Mia has been coroneted, and I agree with her. But won't that be exciting when it happens?" the woman asked with a smile.

Charlotte nodded enthusiastically, "Yes, I have been wondering the same thing lately."

"I wouldn't be surprised if the entire kingdom has wondered that same thing about those two" Sebastian said.

As the three grew silent and the music came to a close, Charlotte watched as Joseph and Clarisse were slowly brought back to reality. Charlotte shook her head in silent disbelief, how could they be so blind? Half of the room knew of their so called 'hidden love' yet they were still completely oblivious to anyone's knowledge of it...they still thought it was their little secret.

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After the ball was over, Clarisse and Mia stood at the door and bid their guests a peaceful night. Once all of the party's attendants had left, Joseph approached Her Majesty as she was speaking to her granddaughter. Clarisse gave her Mia a hug and Joseph heard her say the words "Good night, my love" to the young woman.

"Good night, Grandma" Mia replied.

Once their hug was through, Joseph held out his arm. "Would you care for an escort, madam?" he asked.

Clarisse looked at him and smiled. "How very thoughtful" and she took his arm.

He led her up the stairs and through the vast hallways, the whole while he listened as Clarisse beamed with joy at the progress Mia had made in the past six years.

"I mean, I hardly recognized her, Joseph! To imagine that only six, short years ago she was a skinny little teenager with bushman eyebrows..." she raved.

Joseph chuckled at the memory.

"But now," Clarisse said with emphasis, "now...she was an elegant form drifting swiftly across the dance floor...she looked almost angelic, wouldn't you say, Joseph?"

"Oh yes indeed, Clarisse. It was rather fun to watch in my opinion." Joseph said as he stopped walking and stood with Clarisse in front of her door.

Clarisse laughed like a little girl, "Oh yes, quite fun indeed! 'It was a blast!' as Mia would say."

Joseph laughed with her, "Well listen to you" he said in playful amazement, "You could blend into an American, street-talkin', hip-hop group if you wanted to and no one would give you a second look."

Clarisse's smile faded and she looked genuinely confused, "an American...what?"

Joseph chuckled and gave Clarisse a kiss on the forehead, "Never mind, my dear" he said.

Clarisse was still rather confused but she didn't wish to go into at that moment (but she did make a mental note to ask Mia about it later).

"Well...alright. I suppose I will just see you in the morning then" she said, then she gave him a kiss on the cheek.

"Good night and sleep well, Clarisse." He touched her lovingly on the cheek before opening the door for her and allowing her access into her rooms.

She grinned at him and waved goodbye with her fingers before pushing the doors quietly closed. With a smile embedded on his face, Joseph turned and walked down the hall. He made a quick stop by the security room just to check on things, then he said a quick goodnight to the boys and he headed off to bed. As he walked down the familiar hall that lead to his quarters, Joseph's thoughts drifted back to his brief conversation with Clarisse. The look on her face when he talked about the street talking, hip-hop group was priceless. She had NO IDEA what he was talking about!

Joseph chuckled at the mental image. But his smile soon faded.

It was a very brief time with her. As a matter of fact, he had been seeing less and less of her lately. The moments with her he did manage to steal for himself were short lived and scarce to say the least. He longed to have long peaceful moments with her. But that never happened...because, as she had said all those years ago, she's under constant surveillance, and the public's eye was lidless and forever fixed on their Queen.

Then it hit Joseph like a load of bricks. Soon she wouldn't be their queen anymore, and the eye of the public would be torn from her and fixed on Mia as their new Queen. _'So what happens after that?' _Joseph thought.

Just then, though he was only a few steps away from his door, Joseph froze in mid-stride. He stared at his door knob as if it were revealing to him a wondrous plan in grave detail. His face was totally serious as he processed the possibilities in his mind. He slowly turned in his heal and began to walk back up the hall as one hand came up to his face to stroke his beard thoughtfully and the other rested firmly on his hip. He walked for about four or five steps before turning around and walking four or five steps back toward his room, then he repeated it again. As he paced, he continued to stroke his beard all the while as he stared intensely at the ground. As his rhythmic march up and down the hallway drew out, it became steadily quicker with each step, because, on the inside, he was growing more and more excited with each passing thought. Soon, his hands were no longer grasping his hip or stroking his chin because he was now enthusiastically gesturing with them out in front of him. As his eyes twinkled with joy he began mumbling to himself in regard to this wonderful idea he had just developed. He stopped pacing as his mumbles turned in to clear words and he spoke with excitement.

"Oh yes, oh yes, oh yes! That would be PERFECT!" He said to himself as he firmly grasped a fist full of air in both hands in a somewhat victorious looking gesture.

He heard the sound of foot steps ceasing and turned to see two doormen standing dead still in the hallway and staring at him as though he were a crazy man. It was only then that Joseph remembered that he was still in the hallway. He straitened and let his hands fall loosely at his sides again. He sobered his face and gave a short nod in their direction.

"Night, gentlemen." He said with an air of authority.

They both tilted their heads toward him in respect and the one to the left said, "Goodnight, Sir. Pleasant dreams."

Joseph acknowledged them both, and then he nodded to himself and sighed a sigh that was dangerously close to being a huff, before he turned on his heal and walking into his bedroom.

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"Good Morning, Grandma." Mia greeted happily as she entered her Grandmother's office. She had just woken up about five minutes ago and wanted to see we grandmother briefly before beginning the day.

Clarisse looked up from her papers and smiled upon seeing her Granddaughter's cheery expression. "Good morning, my dear. I trust you slept well?" Clarisse asked as she reluctantly turned her attention back to the mound of papers in front of her.

"Oh yeah, I slept like a baby!" Mia said as she flopped down onto the couch and swung both legs over the armrest.

"So the room was comfortable?"

"Yes it was" she nodded with a smile. "I wouldn't even mind staying there the whole time I'm at the palace."

"Oh, nonsense! The plumbing problem in your suite, I'm told, is to be fully resolved soon and you will be able to stay there."

"Oh no really Grandma, I don't want to cause a fuss" Mia said sitting up properly and straitening her bathrobe.

Clarisse looked up from her work and said, "My dear, must I keep reminding you that you are a Princess now?"

Mia rolled her eyes and smiled. She stood up and walked behind her Grandma's desk.

"Nothing that you may request shall ever again be considered bothersome. And you will never again be able to 'cause a fuss'".

Mia's shoulders rose and fell in a sigh before she bent over and hugger the top of Clarisse's head. Clarisse tilted her head so it was touching Mia's shoulder and raised a hand to pat her on the upper arm. Just then, Clarisse remembered something.

"Mia?" she asked.

Mia ended the hug and looked down at her grandmother, "Yeah?" she said.

Clarisse wasn't exactly sure how to ask this question without sounding strange so she just came out with it. "What's a 'hopping road talker'?"

Mia's face scrunched up in confusion, "a _what_?"

"In America you have 'hopping road talkers', and I wanted to know what they are" Clarisse said, as though it made all the sense in the world.

Mia stuck her bottom lip out further then usual, raised her eyebrows, and hiked her shoulders while shaking her head softly, "I can honestly say that I have no clue what you're talking about."

Clarisse tried to explain, "It's just that...well...never mind. I suppose it's not that important." Then Clarisse went back to her paperwork.

Just then Charlotte walked into the room holding a clipboard in one hand and cell-phone in the other. Charlotte said something about replacing the light fixtures and then flipped her cell-phone closed.

"Your Majesty, Parliament needs your initials here..." Charlotte said as she placed the clipboard on the desk and pointed to a spot on the page. Clarisse signed it and the Charlotte flipped the page and said, "...and your signature here."

Clarisse signed it and Charlotte nodded and smiled before turning to Mia and saying, "Your Highness, Joe wishes to speak with you immediately."

Mia looked surprised, "He wants to speak with _me_ immediately?" she asked, pointing to herself.

Clarisse also looked surprised and turned to look at Charlotte for her answer.

"Yes, Princess. He said to meet him in the Library as soon as possible" Charlotte said.

"Well then, I guess I should be on my way. Love you Grandma, see you at breakfast."

Clarisse nodded and picked up her pin again, "Yes," she said, "I'll see you then."

Mia left and Charlotte was about to follow her when she remembered something and turned to tell Clarisse.

"Your Majesty, you're due in Parliament in ten minutes."

"Oh yes of course, Charlotte thank you for reminding me" Clarisse said as she tried to finish her paper work quickly.

"You're welcome, Your Majesty" and with that, Charlotte turned and was quickly out of the room.

For a moment, Clarisse wondered what Joseph could possibly want to speak with Mia about in private. But then Clarisse quickly decided two things; the first being that Mia and Joseph had grown considerably closer to one another over the years, and Clarisse knew that for a fact because she remembered Mia telling her not too long ago that Joseph was like the fatherly figure she had never had growing up, and Joseph often spoke fondly of the girl in return. And the second thing she decided was that what ever it was that Joseph wanted to say to her was obviously a private matter and was therefore none of Clarisse's business. But even still, Clarisse couldn't help but wonder.

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Charlotte tried to catch up with Mia on her way to the library to meet Joe. Mia heard the sound of Charlotte's high heals jotting across the marble floor. She turned and stopped to give her friend time to catch up.

"Charlotte, did Joe say why he wanted to speak with me?" Mia asked as she and Charlotte began to walk to the library together.

Charlotte shook her head, "no he did say why. All he said was that he needed to talk to us as soon as possible in the library."

"Wait a second; he wants to talk to you too?"

Charlotte nodded, "Yes, he asked that I also join the conversation. I just failed to mention that just now in front of Her Majesty because I didn't want her to get the idea that we were part of some conspiracy against her or anything."

Mia inclined her head up slightly, "That was probably a good idea."

Charlotte nodded and pressed the down arrow on the elevator pad.

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Joseph waited impatiently on a sofa in the library. He was never in the same position for more than sixty seconds. Finally he decided that he needed something to read to pass the time. He stood and walked over to one of the many bookshelves in the room. He studied the books that were placed on the shelves and smiled slightly to himself as he ran across a familiar title, _Pearls per year_. He pulled the book off of the shelf and looked at it. He walked back to the sofa and opened the book to start reading. But before he even got passed the third sentence the door opened and Charlotte walked in with Mia at her side. Joseph snapped the book shut and stood to greet his friends.

"Thank you both for coming" he said as he set the book down on a near by table. "If you would be so kind," he said gesturing towards the sofa he had been sitting on.

Mia and Charlotte both glanced at each other then did as instructed and took a seat on the sofa. Joseph didn't sit. He clasped his hands together, with both index fingers sticking strait up and being pinned against his lips (so, had there been only one hand instead of two, it would have looked like he was trying to tell someone to be quiet).He began to pace slowly. Mia and Charlotte watched in silence as he continued to pace in front of the unlit fireplace, obviously deep in thought. He brought his fingers away from his mouth and drew in a breath as if he were about to speak. Charlotte and Mia waited patiently to hear why he had asked them to come here. But Joseph didn't say anything; instead, he went back to his original stance and continued pacing for a few more long moments. Just as it appeared he would never find the proper words, Joseph spoke. The sound of his voice seemed to startle the two women because they both jumped slightly upon hearing it.

"I have...realized something recently...and it's a wonder that I didn't see it before." He paused, "and I've decided" he paused again, trying to find the words to express his feelings. He sighed and threw his hands up into the air in a frustrated gesture. "I'm just going to come out with it." He closed his eyes, took in a deep breath, and said it. "I am...in love with your Grandmother, Mia. Deliriously so! And I never felt this strongly for anyone in my entire life!"

Mia's face was blessed with a huge grin as he heard those words, and Charlotte was extremely pleased as well by the looks of things.

Joseph locked eye contact with Mia and continued, "But...I'm tired."

Mia's face dropped, was he giving up?

"I'm tired of hiding, and of keeping that love secret." He tore his gaze away from the two women on the couch and started pacing again, but this time, he continued to speak. "I can't even begin tell you both how often I have wanted to just call up the papers myself and confess it all, just so I wouldn't have to hide it anymore, or how many times I've wanted to be able to touch her, even in the most innocent of gestures, in public. But I always stop myself from doing it, because I know that, what ever I do, there will always be at least one person with a camera. I envy EVERY man I see with a wedding ring on his finger, because it is that small band that allows him to love the woman of his life freely and without the concern of who may be watching!" Joseph spoke these words earnestly and with a passion that neither Charlotte nor Mia had ever seen him express before.

He turned and looked at Charlotte, "And...I would ache every time I would see a man with a wedding ring...because I knew...I could never have that with Clarisse, at least..." here he turned his gaze over to Mia, "...not as long as she was Queen."

Realization hit Mia's and Charlotte's faces around the same time. They both knew what he was getting at now.

Joseph clasped both of his hands together again and continues pacing, "But as you both know, Clarisse is not going to be Queen for too much longer. So...I've decided...that" He stopped pacing and looked at both of the eager women across from him, "I've decided that it's high time I got myself one of those wedding bands."

That was all they needed, Charlotte and Mia jumped to their feet and practically ran at Joseph to enwrap him in a hug. Joseph saw them running towards him, squealing with joy, and he prepared himself for the impact. The hug lasted a long time and tears of joy were shed during it.

After a while, Joseph cleared his throat and began to speak again, "And, anyway, I wanted you both to know. And I wanted to thank you because...had you not interrupted my reading time a good six years ago, I might have never gained the courage I needed to get to where I am now. So thank you."

Mia pulled away from the hug and dried her eyes. "You're welcome Joe, you're welcome."

Joseph still had one arm wrapped around Charlotte, who was still hugging him and crying, but with his other hand he reached out and patted Mia softly on the cheek. Both of these ladies were very dear to him and he was extremely pleased with the reaction he got.

After a few minutes went by, and all three of them had calmed down a little, Charlotte spoke.

"So..." she said, "how are we going to do it?"

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There you go guys, I hope you liked it! I would really like to get a review from you and get your feed back. I don't care how long it is, just tell be what aspects you liked and didn't like so I know how to write in the future.

Monker


	13. Today

Sorry that it has taken so long again. This chapter took a little longer than I had planned because I wanted it to fit really well with the movie so I watched the same scene from PD2 a BILLION times trying to get this one right. So I really hope you enjoy it!

Deep breath in...deep breath out...here we go...

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Today was the day. He was going to ask her today. He was supposed to ask her three days ago but he never got around to it. He blamed it on the other circumstances happening in the country, but the reality was simply that Joseph was scared to death. He had never asked someone to marry him before, and he knew that he was going to screw it up one way or another. He knew the basics, bend down on one knee, give her the ring, and say "Will you marry me?"...just then it dawned on Joseph. He never bought her a ring! How could he propose without a ring! It just wasn't done! You have to have a ring!

He was standing outside her office door, about to go in, but now...now he just stood as still as a painting, wondering if he should maybe save the proposal for another day, or if he should just go ahead with it today. Maybe today wasn't such a good day after all.

Joseph slowly started to back away from the door. He turned around and started to walk back up the hall. He only made it about four and a half steps when the door behind him opened and Clarisse walked out.

"Ah, there you are Joseph. Would you like to accompany me on my morning stroll?"

He turned around and faced her, willing his face not to betray him and display his innate nervousness to the world (but more importantly, to the woman five feet away from him). He swallowed a mouth full of air in a silent gulp and clenched his hands into fists, begging them to stop shaking. "I'd be delighted, madam" was his reply.

Clarisse's face grew a beautiful smile as she said, "I'm glad to hear it."

So they began to stroll and talk. Their stroll led them out side. As Joseph went to open the door to allow Clarisse access to the gardens on the other side, he fumbled with the door knob due to the nervous vibration of his hand. Apparently, Clarisse didn't notice, she was gazing thoughtfully at the flowers outside, desperate to walk among them. Joseph opened the door and Clarisse stepped through it with a deep breath in. Before Joseph stepped outside, however, he closed his eyes and shook his head angrily at himself.

'_Steady as you go, Joseph. Steady as you go.' _He told himself, _'you're shaking like a maraca! Calm down...things will be fine...just fine'_. And with that, Joseph stepped outside.

Clarisse was already walking among the flowers when Joseph stepped into the garden. He watched as Clarisse bent down slightly and held a beautiful, purplish-white flower to her nose.

She inhaled deeply, "Ahh...this is an 'Iris macro', Joseph." She turned and bid him to come and take a look.

He stepped closer with a smile and bent to smell the flower. When he brought his face up again, he smiled and said, "Beautiful."

She nodded with a grin, "Yes, it's always been one of my personal favorites." She took a few more steps forward and touched another small flower gently. "This one's a 'Salmon bud', now of course, this hasn't bloomed yet. But you just wait, because when it does...it'll be the most beautiful of all" Clarisse beamed as she stared admiringly at the young bud. When she looked up, she saw Joseph staring only at her...and with a sweet smile on his face.

"What?" she asked.

His smile grew, he took a step closer to her and placed a hand lovingly on her upper arm, "Clarisse..." he began, "when you talk like th-"

Three gardeners passed by with all kinds of tools. Joseph stopped speaking when he saw them draw near. He removed his hand from her arm, lowered his head, and took half a step back from Clarisse. And Clarisse, in return, averted her gaze away from Joseph's. The three men walked by silently and Joseph shot them a fake smile and a nod of the head. One of the men nodded back but aside from that, they simply strode by.

Once the three men were out of ear shot, Clarisse looked back up at the man standing by her, "Joseph, I'm sorry."

"Don't be sorry," he said as he placed a hand on her back and with his other hand gestured for them to continue their walk, "I've gotten used to it by now."

She gave him a sad smile and they kept walking.

For a few more minutes Clarisse continued to point out her favorites among the flowers. Then, as everything grew silent, Joseph realized that it must be his turn to say something. So he said the first thing that popped into his head.

"So..." he began, "have you heard yet of the most recent 'oopsie daisy' our Princess has made?"

Clarisse snorted slightly at the uncharacteristic terminology Joseph chose to use. "I know only what I have overheard the maids saying in the halls."

"Which is...?"

"Not very much" Clarisse said, glancing down at the steps she was about to descend. "Tell me Joseph, you did a background check on him didn't you? What do you know about the Viscount's nephew?"

"Well..." Joseph looked down at the stairs beneath him. He hated stairs; ever since his knee replacement he had had trouble with them. Oh well, at least he wasn't walking upward. "I'm told this Lord Devereaux boy is a native Genovian. Recently graduated Cambridge, gourmet cook, plays polo and rugby, and is known as quite a ladies' man."

"She was in a closet?" Clarisse asked. That had really been the only thing she had heard from the maids and she prayed it wasn't true.

Joseph nodded slightly, "With him. Yes."

Clarisse sighed and looked away. The girl really must be more careful. If the press had gotten wind of it...well...Clarisse didn't even want to think about it. "Does she have the makings of a Queen?"

Joseph heard the tone of her voice. Clarisse loved her granddaughter and had faith in her. She just needed to be reassured that she wasn't pushing the girl too hard to become something that she was never meant to be. "Well, she's young but I've always believed in her."

Clarisse began to ramble as they approached the garden's gazebo, "Wedding invitations have been sent out..."

"Yes" Joseph said quietly.

"She and Andrew make a fine pair, I think."

"Yes, they do."

Now Clarisse wasn't sure if she was stating fact or if she was merely trying to convince herself. Never-the-less she continued, "She's very set on it, you know"

Joseph made a quick glance at their surroundings...no one in sight. The only people who were near enough to maybe overhear them were the three workmen who had passed Clarisse and himself earlier, but they seemed to have been retreating somewhere else to finish their duties. He took a deep breath in...it was now or never. Perfect opportunities like this one were too hard to come by at the palace, so there was no reason on earth why he should turn down this opportunity.

He touched her arm gently so she would stop walking and look at him, "Clarisse, my dear. Forget the wedding for a moment."

She looked at him expectantly, waiting for him to continue.

He cleared his throat, "in less than a month you will no longer be Queen..."

She nodded her head and clasped her hands in front of her.

Joseph continued, "and I will no longer be your head of security."

Though he kept his outer appearance calm, on the inside Joseph was shaking. Why, why, WHY didn't he plan something out? He KNEW he wasn't very good at improvisation! He should have written something down! No use now, he was already doing it. Before he could even contemplate them...the words were coming out of his mouth. He wasn't even entirely sure what it was that he said, but it had something to do with coming out of the shadows.

Clarisse was shocked at his words, she was so totally caught of guard by them that she didn't know what to say. "Oh, Joseph. I..."

He smiled, pleased with himself that he had actually gotten the words out (what ever they were). "Yes, my dear. I would kneel if it weren't for my knee replacement."

They both sat down on a short wall in the gazebo meant to serve as a bench. Joseph reached out and grabbed Clarisse's hand as she began to speak.

"Joseph, there's a wedding to be planned. Mia has to win over the people of Genovia,"

Joseph, still holding her hand, nodded slightly. What she was saying was true, perhaps he had picked a bad time to ask her. Even still, he kept on a brave face and remained hopeful. Right then, all he wanted to hear in the entire world was her voice saying, "yes, my dear Joseph. I will marry you." And even if he didn't live to see the wedding day, he would know...he would _know_ without a shadow of a doubt...that she loved him enough to become his bride. And that would be enough for him to die happy. He was snapped back to reality when Clarisse's words continued.

"...all in less than thirty days."

He looked her in the eyes, "Perhaps it's time to consider the duty you have to yourself."

Once again, Clarisse was taken aback. "Oh..." she said as she looked away from him. She was surprised by that. She had never really thought about it that way... but he had a point. The concept of duty was, of course, vary familiar with her. But never had she ever considered the contrast of duty to her family, country, and its people, to the duty she had to herself. The idea of them being two separate forms of duty had never even crossed her mind. With her it was always "If they're happy, I'm happy", but now she was beginning to doubt the verity of that motto. Was she ever truly happy? Granted, there had been truly splendid times in her life, and content she was most certainly...but was she ever...truly, deeply, unmistakably happy? No...no she wasn't.

Her thoughts drifted to what it would be like to be married to Joseph and a small smile graced her lips. She thought about what it would be like to grab his hand in public and give him a kiss on the cheek. She thought about how she could sit next to him in a car and not have to explain why. She thought about seeing Charlotte walk into the room and say "Your husband is waiting for you in the dining hall", or hearing Joseph introduce her to his friends, saying "I'd like you to meet my wife, Clarisse", or even something as simple as hearing him call her name in public instead of using the title of "Your Majesty".

Joseph's voice made Clarisse lose her daydreaming expression and turn to look at him.

"Clarisse...My darling, please...think about it. Please?" he pleaded quietly.

Clarisse gave him a warm smile. Some times he was just too adorable. "I will" she promised.

His mouth twitched slightly and he nodded his head in thanks.

As if on cue, Joseph spied Lionel approaching them out of the corner of his eye.

"Sir?" the young man asked timidly once he had gotten near enough to be heard. He had been told by a number of men on the security team to never disrupt Joe while he was alone with Her Majesty. But he had been given orders to find Joe immediately because Shades had to speak with him.

Clarisse kept staring straight, with her back to the intern. She closed her eyes and shook her head lightly, _'no privacy!'_ she thought.

Joseph sensed her thoughts and nodded his head in agreement before standing in response to Lionel. "Yes? What is it, Lionel?" Joseph asked, assuming the authoritative tone he used while on the job.

"I'm sorry; I didn't mean to interrupt your guys' moment..." Lionel said hastily.

Joseph cocked an eyebrow.

"ahh, I mean your talk...err what ever."

Clarisse, still with her back to Lionel, bit her lip in effort to hold back the snicker that was threatening to slip loose. Joseph also had to stiffen the grin that wanted so desperately to appear on his face, but he didn't let his smile be shown. The lad was already nervous as it was, Joseph didn't want to add to it. As much as he hated to admit it, Joseph was almost nearing the point of slightly growing fond of the boy.

"Lionel, what is it?" Joseph asked again.

"It's Shades, he wants to talk to you" Lionel finally said, then quickly turned and started walking back towards the palace.

Joseph bore a confused smile and hiked his shoulders at the boy's abrupt departure. Clarisse broke loose in giggles.

"Not a goodbye, or even a slight wave," Joseph joked "he just leaves."

Clarisse laughed "perhaps you should explain to him the polite way of excusing ones self" Clarisse suggested.

"Perhaps I should," Joe looked up and saw as Lionel stopped walking and turned to gesture for Joseph to come. "If you'll excuse me...I think my shadow wants me to follow him."

Clarisse chuckled as Joseph walked pass her with a smile. He stopped once he made it a few feet from the gazebo and turned around. "Think about it?" he asked.

She gave him a smile and slowly nodded her head.

He grinned, "Thank you."

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I hope you guys liked this chapter! I'm sorry it was a little short. The next one is on its way, I promise!

Author's Note: Ok, I thought that the fact that Lionel just said that Shades wanted to see Joe and then he just turned and walked away...well I thought that was the most hilarious thing in the world! But after I read that part to someone sitting in the same room, they said that it really wasn't as funny as I thought it was. So maybe it had to do with the fact that it's kind of late at night but I really thought it was funny so I kept it in. Sorry if you guys didn't get the same kick out of it as I did.

Leave a review if you'd like, but there's no obligation.

--Monker


	14. Radio Waves

I am sorry to keep all of you wonderful readers waiting SO long for this update. But here it is now, I hope you enjoy it.

**Something you should know:** There is a scene in this chapter that involves Joe speaking Spanish to a fellow Puerto Rican. Originally I wanted to have the lines that were exchanged during that scene to actually be written in Spanish. But after brief thought I decided that would mean to much trouble for all of my readers (at least that ones that are not fluent in Spanish), so I wrote it out in English. BUT, (for those of you who care) I did copy that same scene at the end of this chapter in an author's note; but I wrote the appropriate lines in Spanish just because I couldn't help myself. So those of you who may have liked those lines in their original Spanish, I made it so that you could have both ways.

Deep breath in...deep breath out...here we go!

* * *

Joseph stood among a large group of people. Everything seemed to be going quite well at the Royal Garden Party. He looked over by the refreshment table and spotted Princess Mia speaking with young Lord Herandil and Lady Roslyn. Joseph's protective eyes made one more scan of the people nearest Mia; he didn't detect any weapons or suspicious happenings, so his eyes moved over to where Clarisse seemed to be engaged in a conversation with Charlotte concerning some unknown topic. Again, he scanned the surrounding people and, just as before, everything looked fine.

"Joe! Come here for a moment, would you please?"

Joseph turned and saw the Prime Minister gesturing for Joseph to come to him. He politely obeyed.

"Joseph, I would like you to meat Ambassador Franc Alluvia. He is visiting Genovia as a representative from Puerto Rico. I thought you two might enjoy meeting one another," Sebastian said.

Just as Sebastian had expected, Joseph immediately began speaking to the Ambassador in his native tongue.

_"Ah, yes. A pleasure to meet you, Sir. Exactly where in Puerto Rico are you from, Ambassador?"_ Joseph asked, in perfect Spanish.

The elderly man grinned; he obviously enjoyed hearing his language again. _"I am originally from Mayagüez, but after college I moved to San Juan,"_ the Ambassador replied, also in Spanish.

Joe nodded, _"Oh, I have a cousin who lives there."_

_"Upon your approach, this good man,"_ at this point the Ambassador gestured towards Sebastian, _"called you Joe. Is that right?"_

"Oh yes, of course. Forgive me for not properly introducing myself," Joseph said in English. "My name is Joseph, but many of my friends have taken to calling me Joe."

"Delighted to meet you, Señor Joseph. Is there a last name that goes with that?"

Sebastian joined in the conversation since both men were now speaking English. "He has a last name, but few people actually know it," Sebastian said with a chuckle and a hearty pat on the back to Joseph.

Joe grinned slightly at the accuracy of the Prime Minister's comment.

"Oh? And why is that?" asked the Ambassador.

Joseph casually dug his hands into his pockets and hiked his shoulders. "It's rarely come up. If you'll excuse me..." Joseph said as he excused himself from the triangle.

After Joe's departure the Ambassador turned back to Sebastian and said, "He's sort of a secretive man, isn't he?"

The Prime Minister chuckled again, "He's allowed to be. He's our Head of Security."

Clarisse was sitting calmly in the shade when she felt, out of nowhere, two hands on her shoulders. She jumped slightly at the unexpected contact, but she relaxed when she felt Joseph lean down and speak softly into her ear.

"You wouldn't believe what just happened," he said, then he stood upright again and subtly rubbed her shoulders for the briefest of moments.

Clarisse smiled, "What?"

"I was in the middle of a conversation with the Prime Minister and a Puerto Rican Ambassador when I looked in this direction and saw the most gorgeous woman sitting entirely alone on a bench," Joseph said as he released his hold on her shoulders and came to sit beside her.

Clarisse chuckled but didn't say anything. She just tore her gaze away from her folded hands to look strait ahead.

Joseph studied her expression, noting the pensiveness of her eyes. "What are you thinking about? Your eyes are far away," Joseph asked after a short while.

He wanted to reach over and tickle the back of her neck the way he had learned to do a long time ago. But he kept himself from doing so once he had taken a quick look around him and noticed several pairs of eyes watching his every move.

Clarisse sighed, "Oh, the future."

"You seem to be thinking about that a lot lately."

"Yes, I know. I just...sometimes I wonder..." Clarisse began.

Joseph sat quietly and listened for her to continue.

"...if I'm doing the right thing by asking her to make the same sacrifices I made. I remember when I was her age and at the same place she is in at right now. I remember feeling like my mother and father were so cruel to make me marry this total stranger. But I did it...because I loved this country and still do. But I always wondered. What would have happened if I had lived a normal life? What would it have been like? And I wonder now, am I keeping Mia from enjoying the same life that I used to wish I had led all those years ago? In other words...am I asking Mia to forfeit _her_ happiness...for the sake of _my_ country?"

Torn between the need to be proper, and the desire to offer comfort to his girl, Joseph debated the best way to handle the situation. He finally reached over and took her hand in his. "My dear, Mia has come to love Genovia just as much as you do. She is willing to sacrifice all...for the sake for her people. She loves them; she would die for them, just as I know you would. She doesn't feel like you are asking it of her, she is choosing to take this path. And, with all due respect, you can second guess it all you want, but she is not going to change her mind; because, believe it or not, she's just about as hard-headed as her grandmother."

Clarisse looked offended, "You think I'm hard-headed?"

"Well of course you are."

Clarisse gave Joseph a look and he quickly explained himself, "But I would see it as an asset, Clarisse. If you weren't, I'm sure you would struggle to hold your own in Parliament."

Clarisse chuckled and Joseph relaxed.

"Well, I suppose you do have a point in that," Clarisse said with a squeeze of Joseph's hand.

He looked down at their hands and smiled. But then he let go and sat back in his seat, a safe distance away from the woman next to him. Clarisse understood his actions. She looked up and saw a few people jerk their heads in different directions. From what Clarisse could count, there had been at least four couples watching Joseph and herself. Oh well, it wasn't the first time.

Joseph noticed her look up and survey the crowd. He also noticed her soft sigh afterward. "How many?" he asked, not looking up.

"At least five people," she answered, rounding down.

Joseph silently nodded. "I'm sorry," he said, knowing he had overstept a boundry for such a public scenario.

"Don't be," was her answer. and the couple simply looked at each other a shared a small smile.

Silence came after that, and they merely watched the crowd and enjoyed the music from the musicians on the distant stage. "Where _is_ Mia?" Clarisse asked after a short while of just sitting with Joseph.

Joseph looked up and his eyebrows lowered in concern. He looked around the garden but saw no sign of the Princess. "That's an excellent question," Joe said as he stood up from his seat and kept scanning the crowd. "I'll go find her."

Clarisse reached out and took his hand to give it one more squeeze. "All right," she said, "see you in a while."

Joseph squeezed her hand back but his eyes kept searching the crowd. "Yes," he said, "I'll see you in a bit." He let go of her hand and started walking into the crowd. Once he was far enough away from Clarisse he made the call on his radio.

Charlotte was sipping quietly on her drink when she suddenly heard in her ear Joseph's call. "Does anyone have a twenty on the Princess?" Charlotte looked around her. She could not see Mia. One by one members of the security team started replying to the call.

"This is Sinatra, I'm standing by the palace's west entrance and I don't see her, Joe."

"This is Shades; I'm here by the stage, no sign of her here, Joe"

"Dominic here, the last time I saw the Princess, she was with Andrew. He was taking pictures of her. That was approximately four or five minutes ago."

Now Charlotte spoke into her radio. "I saw her walking with Lord Devereaux just a moment ago. They were headed towards the northern side of the garden, towards the tall bushes and the fountain aria."

Charlotte heard Joe's voice back on the radio. "How long ago, Charlotte?"

"Three...maybe four minutes ago," Charlotte replied.

Somebody whistled into the radio, "Two different guys in a span of five minutes? The lady certainly knows how to distribute her time."

Charlotte rolled her eyes at Dominic's statement, but Joe wasn't about to let it go unnoticed.

"Dom, watch your tongue. That's your future Queen you're talking about."

A child-like "yes sir" from Dominic was heard on the radio before Joe got back to business.

"Charlotte, I'm heading there now. Meet me there," said Joe.

"Okay," Charlotte said as she started walking to where she had seen Nicholas and Mia only a few minutes ago.

Joseph met up with her and they both went searching for Mia in the tall garden.

"What were they doing, Charlotte?" asked Joe as he and Charlotte walked through the maze-like garden.

Charlotte shook her head, "I'm not sure. I wasn't exactly _watching_ them; I just sort of _saw_ them...if that makes sense."

Joseph nodded his head then stopped to take a look at what was before him. "What do you think happened here?" Joe asked, pointing to two large trails of water coming from the fountain.

Charlotte looked at it with her head cocked to the side in confusion, "I have no idea."

They both thought about it for a short while. Charlotte decided that then was as good a time as any, so she asked the question she had been wondering for a while.

"Joe?" she asked.

He was facing with his back to her. He had his hands on his hips and he was looking curiously at the trails of water. "Mhmm?" he replied.

"I saw you talking to Her Majesty..."

Joe froze and turned sideways so he could look at her.

"...has she given you an answer yet?" Charlotte asked. If anyone else were in her shoes, the look on Joe's face would have caused them to drop the topic quickly. But Charlotte learned a long time ago that, as long as you were not his enemy, Joseph was no one to fear. And after a while she learned to see him as the friend he was, instead of the intimidating Head of Security that some members of the palace staff still thought him to be.

Joe's face softened and he sighed disappointingly, "No...no she hasn't," Joseph said, shaking his head lightly.

Charlotte walked up to him and placed a friendly hand on his back, "She'll come around, Joe. She will," she said.

Joe gave Charlotte a thankful smile, "I hope you're right."

"EAGLE IS LEAVING! EAGLE IS LEAVING!"

Both Charlotte and Joseph jumped upon the unexpected and incredibly loud voice in their ears. Charlotte yawned in effort to pop hear ears, and Joe took out his ear piece and rubbed his ear a little. _'I'm going to kill that boy,'_ Joseph thought.

"In hushed tones, Lionel. Hushed tones" Charlotte chuckled slightly upon hearing Clarisse's voice over the radio.

"Golly, Lionel!" voiced Sinatra, "Once you've finished blowing our ears off, could you tell us if you know where Her Highness is?"

Lionel got back on the radio, "Sorry guys. The Princess just walked up, she's with the Queen now."

Joseph bowed his head and spoke into the microphone that was clipped to his jacked, "Thank you, Lionel."

Joe looked back at Charlotte, "Let's go," he said.

Charlotte followed Joe out of the garden and towards the palace. "Did you not tell him to speak softly when you first gave him his radio?" she asked.

"Well, apparently I was mistaken when I assumed that God distributed the gift of common sense to EVERYONE!" said Joe.

* * *

The next morning began the "big day." It was Genovia's Grand Independence Day, which also meant the Independence Day Parade was due to begin in a short half hour. That said, Clarisse was frantically looking for just the right jewelry set to wear for that special day. As she opened and closed different jewelry boxes, Clarisse was not aware of the man who snuck up behind her. Finally, as he placed his hands on the back of her chair, Clarisse looked up into the mirror to see Joseph standing behind her.

"Oh Joseph, you startled me," Clarisse said with a hand over her heart.

"I'm sorry my dear. I merely wanted to say good morning before the parade," Joseph said, then he reached out and stilled Clarisse's moving hand. He brought it to his mouth for a kiss, and then he reached out with his other hand to grab one of the many jewelry boxes.

"This one," he said, opening the box and taking out the necklace. He fastened the beautiful string of purls around her neck and then leaned over to place a kiss on her cheek, while maintaining eye-contact through the mirror.

She smiled and placed a hand on his cheek, "Thank you," she said.

"You're welcome."

Clarisse sighed as she began to put the matching earrings in place, "I don't feel at all ready for this. My sleep was somewhat limited last night."

Joseph moved over to where he could see her face-to-face. He half sat on/half leaned against the corner of her make-up desk and he crossed his arms. "How come?" he asked.

"I would be lying if I said that Mia's actions with the Vise Count's nephew yesterday did not concern me to the core," said Clarisse as she put in the other earring.

Joseph nodded his head, now he understood.

"You know this is the second time something like that has happened? Thank God the press knew nothing about either incident! If they somehow found out..." Clarisse's hand came up to her forehead.

Joseph left his little perch and kneeled next to Clarisse's chair, taking her hands into his. "My darling, Mia is a smart girl. She knows what she's doing. She knows she has made mistakes, and I believe she has learned from them." He noticed Clarisse's unsure expression, "My dear, Mia is bound to make even more mistakes and even more hard choices, but that's alright, because she will never learn anything if there's nothing in life to teach her. Helen raised a good girl, she has a good, sturdy head on her shoulders...let her use it."

Clarisse sighed and looked down into her lap. Joseph's hands on the side of her face caused Clarisse to look at him again.

"Are you going to be alright?" he asked.

She nodded, "Yes, it's just that, sometimes I don't like the idea that not everything is in my control."

Joseph smiled and nodded, "I know," he said before leaning in and placing a kiss to her lips.

The kiss lasted a bit longer than Joseph had initially intended, but the Head of Security was far from complaining. It would have lasted longer too, that is, if someone (with _extremely_ poor timing skills, in Joseph's opinion) did not speak over the radio and hence break the magic of the moment.

Clarisse was confused when Joseph broke off the kiss. She had not heard the radio and so did not understand why Joseph looked so frustrated as he lifted the collar of his jacket to his mouth. Then Clarisse understood what must have happened as Joseph stood and spoke into his microphone.

"Yes, this is Joe. Her Majesty is with me."

_Pause_

"Yes Charlotte, she'll be ready in a moment...and Dom...we'll discuss that comment later," Joseph said before turning to face her again. "My apologies," he said.

"It's quite alright. What comment?" Clarisse asked.

"Hmm?"

"What comment are you going to speak with Dominic about later?"

"Oh...nothing. I'm afraid the man has a somewhat active imagination, though."

Clarisse smiled and stood up from her seat. She headed out the door, but as she passed Joseph, she placed a hand on his cheek and gave him another tender kiss.

As Clarisse's journey to the door caused her hand to slowly slide off of his cheek, Joseph smiled.

"Then again," he tilted his head to the side, "perhaps Dom wasn't so far off."

* * *

There you go guys, I hope you liked it. The next one is on its way! Leave a review if you'd like!

**A little fun/random thing you could try: **When I write chapters like this one, that are taking place during actual scenes from the movie, I always try to make every piece fit perfectly. I'm sure I don't always succeed, but at least I try my best. And this chapter was no exception. So I challenge you guys to put in your Princess Diaries 2 DVD's and check out a certain scene. If you watch the scene where Andrew and Mia talk with Nicholas and Lady Elisa in the garden party scene, there are a number of people in the background. If you look at the group of people that are to the top far right side of the screen, you will see three people, three men, to be exact. And if you watch, you will see that right after Nicholas says his line ("Elisa and I were just discussing her latest achievement...") you will see a man looking somewhat like Joe excusing himself from a conversation involving two other men.

That was what encouraged me to add in the scene with Joseph talking to Sebastian and the Ambassador from Puerto Rico. I understand that the three people seen in the background in the movie are at quite a distance and there is no telling who those three people actually were...but I thought it would be fun to use it anyway. So give it a shot. And tell me if you saw what I just described.

**Author's Note:** Here is that scene I promised...

Just as Sebastian had expected, Joseph immediately began speaking to the Ambassador in his native tongue.

"Ah, sí. Un placer para encontrarle, Señor. ¿Exactamente donde en Puerto Rico es usted de, el Embajador?" Joseph asked.

The elderly man grinned; he obviously enjoyed hearing his native language again. "Soy originalmente de Mayagüez, pero después del colegio que moví a San Juan" the Ambassador replied.

Joe nodded, "Ah, tengo a un primo que vive allí."

"Sobre su enfoque, este hombre bueno" at this point the Ambassador gestured towards Sebastian, "Llamóle Joe. ¿Es ese derecho?"

"Oh yes, of course. Forgive me for not properly introducing myself" Joseph said in English. "My name is Joseph, but my friends call me Joe."

...I hope all of the translations were correct. If one of you readers knows Spanish very well, I would love to know if all of those translations were right. I hope they were, and I hope you guys liked this chapter! The next one is on the way!

Monker


	15. Heads or Tales?

Here you go, guys! Once again, I am sorry for the wait. But I felt like I needed to rewrite most of this chapter, I felt like it wasn't dramatic enough the first time I wrote it. But I think I took care of that.

Deep breath in...Deep breath out...here we go

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Each day seemed like an eternity, so it was no surprise when Joseph lost count of the number of days since he had asked Clarisse to be his wife. Still, he had no answer. As the sun began to set on the umpteenth day, Joseph decided that he could wait no longer, he had to know. So, he went looking for her. As Joe passed him, Dean mentioned that Her Majesty had been just about to take Maurice out for a walk around the northern grounds just a moment ago, with that information Joseph set out in the proper direction.

He stepped out into the fresh air of a new Genovian night. Any other night, Joseph would have taken a good while merely enjoying the cool air to his skin, but this was not any other night, this was the night he learned the answer, and it was for that reason that Joseph's heart was pounding unlike ever before. He placed a hand to his chest and took a deep breath in, _'easy, Joe...'_ he told himself, _'it's nothing to get excited over...if this IS excitement as apposed to nerves.'_ Joseph sighed; this kind of thinking was going to get him nowhere.

He walked gingerly—so as not to hurt his knee—down the few steps and onto the beautiful lawn that the grounds crew spent countless hours making sure that it stayed as green as Eden, though in the bright moonlight, the soft grass looked more blue than it did green. As Joe treaded across the lawn in search of Clarisse, his mind continued to race. _'What are you thinking? Of course this is something to get excited over! What ever happens within the next few minutes or so depicts the rest of your life and how you are going to spend it.' _Joseph froze as the thought sunk in. It was true...everything was about to be different, regardless of what the answer was, in a few simple moments, his life was going to be totally changed, and whether it was for the better or for the worse was still completely up in the air. It was a totally horrifying moment for Joseph, and he let his thoughts get the better of him. _'You, Joe...are standing at a crossroad with absolutely no control over your feet. It's as though fate is flipping a coin and you can only stand back ad watch. Heads, you marry this wonderful woman who means the world to you, and the two of you grow old together...'_ Joseph snorted with amusement, "Too late for that!" he joked, _'or Tales...'_ Joseph's face dropped, _'Tales, she turns you down for one reason or another...and you die alone...and unloved.' _

Joseph stood, frozen in the cool moonlight. He studied every blade of grass at his feet with sorrowful eyes. Could she really do that? To him? Could he really have gone all those years being totally blinded by his own fancy free, giddy as a school boy because "I'm in love!" outlook on life that he missed all of the signs she was throwing at him to say that she wasn't REALLY interested in anything serious...she just wanted a new change of pace from the "weeping widow" scene? Could that really be possible, that she might see him as "Today's Special", but never as a potential lifelong partner?

Joseph closed his eyes, he was beginning to sway. He shook his head and wiped his hand down his face. _'No! Of course not!'_ he thought frantically, _'Clarisse loves me! I know it! How could she not? I've seen the way she looks at me! I've felt the way she kisses me! A person couldn't fake that kind of stuff! She's in love with me, just as I am with her! That's fact! There's nothing up in the air! She's going to say yes! The coin is HEADS!'_

Joseph's thoughts were interrupted by an unfamiliar voice coming from one of the palace doors to his right.

It was a woman's voice. "Our selections for dancing at the royal reception," said the voice.

Joseph walked up the stairs to peer inside the open door. He smiled absently as he watched Clarisse place a hand delicately atop something on the table. As Clarisse turned and walked towards the center of the room, clearly listening to the waltz music pouring out from the speakers, Joseph stepped silently into the room. Joseph's hand absently played with the buttons on his jacket as he watched Clarisse begin to sway to the music. He smiled when he saw her raise her hands and begin dancing with an invisible partner. After only a second or two, Joseph decided that it was time that he cut in. When the time was right, Joseph smoothly slipped himself into Clarisse's grip.

"Oh!" she gasped with delight before smiling towards him brightly with welcome. Yes, indeed this woman loved him.

As Clarisse placed the side of her forehead against the side of his chin, Joseph thought briefly if he should wait a little while before asking. In a flash, he shoved all of his second guessing out of his mind. He came here for a purpose, and he intended to get it done!

Without hardly any time slipping by, Joseph asked, "Have you been thinking about us?"

She stopped dancing and brought her head back slightly to look at him. Watching her in silence, seeing the hesitation in her eyes was like watching that ever powerful coin bounce and spin on its edge.

She looked at him and nodded slightly, "Yes, I have." The look on her face was not a happy one. Her eyes seemed almost to be begging him to forgive her. She looked as though she did not wish to hurt him, but the answer she had silently given was shattering everything within him all the same. The tone of her voice was all his mind needed and the look in her eyes was all his heart could bare.

He blinked absently a few times, wondering if this could REALLY be happening. Then he nodded slightly, "I see," he was surprised he could say anything after a blow that deep, then he flashed her a weak smile and said, "If you'll excuse me." As Joseph turned to walk—though he wanted to run—out the door he heard Clarisse speak.

"No, Joseph. You had to know what I was going to say. I-I" she grabbed him by the hand to pull him back.

It was too painful, he wanted just to leave and he tried to show that to her when he raised his other hand in protest. The look in her eyes was begging him to stay and hear her out, and had they been any other's eyes then he may have disobeyed them, but because they belonged to Clarisse...he stayed...no matter how painful.

"Mia needs me now more than ever before. And, it's the monarchy. I mean, as Queen it's my responsibility. You KNOW how it is," Clarisse spoke frantically, pleading with God for Joseph to understand.

"You were never JUST my Queen, Clarisse. You were the someone that I wanted to spend the rest of my life with."

She tried to interrupt but Joseph was not about to let that happen. He stayed in painful silence as she was saying what she had to say; now it was her turn.

"But..." he continued "if you prefer that I see you first and foremost as my Queen..." Joe hesitated and felt the button of his jacket again, "I shall oblige."

"No, Joseph..." Clarisse's hand came up to clasp his cheek and, for the first time in his life, Joseph pulled away from the gesture.

'_For goodness sake, woman!'_ Joseph wanted to cry out, but refrained,_ 'You break me, you rip out my heart and trample it 'till it is one with the ground and then you put your hand to my cheek as though you LOVED me?! You kill me!'_ all of these feeling he wanted to yell towards to woman facing him...but he didn't. Instead, he gave her a slight bow of the head and said, "Your Majesty," then he gave her one last look, turned his back to her and walked out of the room...as far as he was concerned...out of her life forever.

Clarisse watched in unbelieving silence as Joseph exited the room. For a long moment after Joseph had disappeared from view, Clarisse's eyes still lingered on the sheer, swaying fabric that hung delicately in the door way. What she was waiting for, Clarisse was not certain. But she knew what she was hoping for...she was hoping to see, any moment, the form of Joseph returning into view and running back to her to embrace her in a hug. And even if not a hug, Clarisse longed even for that slight squeeze Joseph would always sneak to her upper arm when he could tell she was troubled over something. But she knew that none of that would ever happen now. The man was heartbroken; there was no chance of him returning to her after what she just did to him. Here hopes were ill placed. Clarisse sulked over to the small radio box and turned off the music, pausing to hang her head in sorrow. Oh dear...what had she done?

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Clarisse poked her head into the room and looked to the left and then to the right, the kitchen was empty...just as she had expected. Clarisse had learned a long time ago that at this time of night rarely did anyone occupy the palace's cooking room. It was one of her secret hideaways that only she knew of. Actually...come to think of it...she was pretty sure that Joseph knew of many, if not all, of her occasional escapes to this place, for he used to often join her in the kitchen late at night and the two of them would be able to talk and enjoy each other's company. Clarisse smiled at the memories. She remembered how he flashed her a somewhat surreptitious grin one night as he pulled from the back of the refrigerator a small container of chocolate milk, and how he made a deal with her that if she promised to keep his secret then he would share some of his special chocolate milk with her. It was still amazing to her how he could so easily cut loose and behave in such a manner when alone and with her, but then in the morning he was as serious as ever while on the job. It was fascinating and entertaining at the same time to watch him in both scenarios; it was almost like he had two totally different sides of himself. Like an irregular "Dr. Jeckle and Mr. Hyde" in the sense that neither of Joseph's two selves were at all unpleasant.

The more Clarisse thought about Joseph, the worse she felt. And that was the very reason that she came to the kitchen to begin with. She had thought that coming down here where she could have some peace and quiet would be nice, and she brought a book with her just to make sure. Clarisse made herself a small bowl of soup and opened her book. It was a good book; she had just found it recently in the palace library and was already about halfway through it. She took a sip of her soup and then placed her glasses on her face and began to read...

_The autumn leaves blew across the lawn and Victor's tan ford pulled into the driveway. He climbed out of the car with a coffee mug in one hand and a briefcase in the other. He sipped the warm liquid as he swung the car door shut with his foot. About that time, Victor heard a young child's cry and turned to see little Connie running towards him. _

"_Daddy!" the little girl yelled with excitement, her blond curls bouncing up and down as she trotted toward her father._

"_Hey there, little angel!" Victor exclaimed, placing his drink on the roof of his car and kneeling down to welcome his daughter. _

_The little girl ran faster when she saw him kneeling and soon he had her clasped under her arms and was hoisting her into the air._

'_I wonder what Joseph would have been like as a father...'_ Clarisse thought. She could often picture the character of Victor looking just like Joseph, and just then, as she pictured him lifting little Connie into the air, Clarisse remembered a conversation she had had with Joseph a few years ago.

"_Joseph?" she had asked as the two of them sat alone in the library. _

"_Yes, love?" He had answered while playing a little with her hair. _

"_You've never been married...have you?" it came out more of a statement than it did a question._

_Joseph looked the slightest bit surprised by the question, but still he smiled. "No...no I haven't" he answered, searching her face for clues as to why she had randomly decided to bring this up. "Why?" he asked._

"_Well, I was just thinking...you do like children, don't you?"_

_Joseph chuckled lightly, "Yes. Clarisse, I'm not quite the monster that everyone thinks I am."_

"_Well..." Clarisse began, "...wasn't there ever a time in your life that you ever wanted to settle down and have a family, wife, children, a little dog that curls up in a ball in front of the fireplace and goes to sleep?"_

_Joseph again laughed softly at the things Clarisse was asking, "Well sure, Clarisse. There were times when I wanted those things. But I never chose to have them."_

"_How come?"_

"_Because I was waiting" he said simply._

"_Waiting for what?"_

_Joseph looked at her sincerely, "for you" he said with a smile. _

_Clarisse was confused, that didn't make any sense to her, "But...all these years...with so many possibilities lost? How...?"_

"_Hey..." Joseph put a finger to her mouth, "to me...you're worth it."_

Clarisse's smile faded, that fond memory no longer brought her joy. It was painful to think about it now. As far as she was knew, Joseph's long wait had been for nothing. _'No!'_ Clarisse thought, _'I have nothing to feel sorry for. It's not like I was turning him down because of my own will...it's out of my hands. If it were entirely up to me, and if I had no other responsibilities, then Joseph and I would have been married quite some time ago. It's not my fault...Mia needs me still. And that's that!'_ Clarisse turned her attention back to her book...

...Oh!...it was no use! Her soul was too troubled to read. Clarisse set her open book on the table in front of her and marked her place with her baby-blue bookmark. Clarisse began to think about what it would be like to be married to Joseph. She imagined walking in to find him playing guitar on her chaise lounge and him calling her over to ask her an opinion on the way he was playing some song. And he would end every other sentence by saying, "wife" or "my wife" simply because he liked the feel of it leaving his mouth. She thought about how if would feel to be able to request that he meet her in a certain room without having to explain to anyone why she needed to see him. She thought about being able to pick up the newspaper and see a picture of Joseph standing NEXT to her, instead of being tucked away in some corner or something.

But...now...she would never have any of those things. It was impossible. She had finally done the unthinkable and there was no way she could get Joseph to take her back despite of it. She felt a small tear trickle down her cheek. _'No,'_ she protested weakly, _'It is not my fault. I am unable to marry Joseph. Maybe after Mia has been named queen and has been on the throne for a year or so, so that she is well adjusted and comfortable as raining monarch. But any time before that...it's just too soon'_ another tear was shed and somewhere deep within her, Clarisse knew that little of that was actually true. She wondered if she really didn't have any other obligations, she wondered if Mia was ALREADY prepared for the crown. Maybe the truth was not that Clarisse was unable to marry, perhaps she was really frightened. For so many years she had only wished to please and serve her people...maybe she was just scared to consider doing something for herself that did in no way benefit the people of Genovia. Clarisse felt another tear coming on, so she blinked hard to try her best to keep anymore signs of weakness from slipping through her lashes. Once she felt they were under control, she stared sadly at the bowl of strawberries that sat in the center of the table. She heard footsteps approaching and looked up to see who it was.

Mia's ladies maids were giggling but then looked up with a gasp.

"Oh, Your Majesty!" Brigitte said.

"Oh no, ladies. Come in, come in. I was just about to leave."

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Joseph walked into the sunroom with thoughts racing through his mind. He did not come to this room very often. But he also knew that very few other people ever visited it, so it seemed like a good place to think. There were many windows and skylights but few arias for sitting. There were several small fountains that were built into the wall and spread all throughout the room. There was one large fountain towards the middle of the room, and it was on the bench next to that fountain that Joseph sat down on to think. He could not make much sense of the things he was feeling, just as Joseph recognized one of the many emotions it would disappear just as quickly as it had come and was replaced by another, equally as heartbreaking emotion. Joseph clenched his head in his hands and rested his elbows on his knees. Quietly Joseph began to speak; unaware of the figure that had followed him into the room and now lingered in the doorway.

"Oh God!" Joseph cried quietly, his first tear escaping his eyes and splashing to the floor in between his feet. "I don't understand. I...I thought I knew. I..." his voice trailed off and he did not speak for a little while, "...I thought I had this whole thing figured out. But then...suddenly...suddenly this happens and...I wasn't ready for it. I'm hurting down here, God. I'm really hurting...like I've never hurt before, and you KNOW what I've come through so far." Joseph brought his head out from his hands and wiped his eyes a little. "I...I love her. And this is not at all how I had planned it to hap-" Joseph stopped to rephrase that, he knew better (from past experiences) than to make his own plans when he really had no control over his own fate, "...It's just that...never in a million years would I have guessed that this is what you had planned." he paused for a long while.

The figure in the doorway watched in silence as Joseph's back began to shake lightly from the tears. Joseph had a sobbing intake of breath and then his back began to shake again. Joseph sat up strait but still clasped his face lightly with his hands while he looked up towards something beyond the ceiling.

"Why?" Joseph said, barely above a whisper, "...Why did it have to be Tales?"

Joseph was silent for a long time after that and finally the figure in the doorway spoke, "...Sir?" asked a timid voice.

Joseph jumped slightly at the sudden break of silence before glancing quickly over his shoulder though he already knew who is was from the voice, "Shades!" Joe cleared his throat a wiped his eyes with his palms quickly before standing to face the other man. "What are you doing here?" Joe asked, sniffing quite a bit.

"I saw you come in here and followed you, meaning to ask you a question. But when I heard you speak I forgot about that. I'm sorry" Shades said, sounding not very far from what he sounded like when he was just an intern at the palace, and Joseph was his mentor.

"It's alright," Joe lied, "what was your question?"

"I've forgotten."

Joe sighed ironically and looked at the ground. He had one hand on his hip and the other one was scratching the back of his neck, his face was extremely red, whether that was from the crying or from the embarrassment Shades didn't exactly know...a little bit of both, he guessed. There was an awkward silence for a good thirty seconds. Finally, Shades spoke.

"Sir?" he began, "...Joe? Are you ok? Do you want to talk?"

Joe looked at him and tried to smile, "No, I'm fine Shades. You should probably get back to work. Maybe your question will come back to you."

Shades stood still for a little while before saying, with a great deal of pertness, "I don't think so...I think you need to talk about this."

"About what? There's nothing to talk about?"

"What's 'Tales'?"

Joseph's breath caught, he couldn't answer that question. After a few attempts at an answer, but with nothing coming out, Joseph finally sighed and shook his head as if to say, "You wouldn't understand."

"See? You have something to tell. You're going through something right now and as a friend, it's my job to be here for you."

Joseph looked at the man, at any other time Joseph probably would have been very touched by Shade's efforts, but Joe just didn't want to talk right then. "Look," he said, "I appreciate what you are trying to do here...but I don't want to talk right now. I'm ok."

"No, you need to talk, I can tell."

"I'm ok, Shades" Joe insisted, his tone slightly firm.

"No you're not, Joe" Shades said, matching Joe's tone.

Joe was starting to get irritated, "Seriously Shades, drop it!"

"Seriously Joe, you need to talk about it."

"Shades?" Joe warned.

"Joe?" Shades matched.

"Scott!"

"Joseph!"

They hardly ever used each other's real names. It was always "Joe" and "Shades" with the both of them. When the names "Scott" and "Joseph" were used, they both knew it was time to take things seriously.

Joseph sighed and turned around. He stroked his beard and looked out the window. Soon he began to wonder why he was so against talking to Shades, after all...the two of them had been friends for a long time. Joe knew that he could trust him. Still facing the window, Joseph spoke.

"I asked Clarisse to marry me."

"And she said 'no'." Shades finished. Though he was still facing the window, Shades could make out the sad nod that Joseph gave.

"I thought...I thought I was really important to her. I thought she really cared."

Shades took a few steps forward and then sat down on the bench that Joe was using only moments ago. "She does care, Joe. She loves you."

"Ha!" Joe said as he turned back to face his friend, "that's not the message she was trying to communicate a few moments ago!"

"Just give her some time, she'll come around."

"Time?" Joseph asked as though that were the most ridicules thing he had ever heard. "I've given her thirty-nine YEARS worth of time! Do you realize that some people go through their entire life with less time then what I've given her already?"

"Joe, come on. Cool down a little bit here. Think about this a moment, this is Clarisse we're talk about here. You love her."

Joe was pacing now, "Correction, loved."

Shades sat with an open mouth for a while, his head moving from side to side as he watched his friend pace in front of him, "...You don't mean that."

Joseph stopped pacing and looked at the ground, hands on his hips. The way he bit his lip, Shades could tell that he wanted to take it back...but he didn't. Instead he looked up at Shades and said, "I want you to go and experience EXACTLY what I just went through, and THEN you can come back here and tell me what I mean or don't mean."

Shade's was shocked but soon continued, "Maybe you didn't hear her right. What did she say?"

"She said that Mia still needed her and that she still had responsibilities as Queen."

"But soon Mia won't need her as much and she will no longer be Queen. She's only asking you to wait a little longer." Shades pointed out.

"You use the word 'wait' as though it was an easy task. Well it's not." Joe sighed, trying to think of a way to make himself clear to his friend, "Ok...try to imagine this...there is this woman in your life. When you first start to develop feelings toward her you think 'no...I should just WAIT it out. It will go away' so you wait...it doesn't go away. Years go by, feelings grow, and you think 'My word! I can't WAIT any longer! If I hold it in for one more instant I will explode!' but...just as you are about to confess it all...her youngest son is killed in a traumatic car accident because some moron decided to take a seat in front of a steering wheel after spending one too many hours in a bar! So you think to yourself, 'now is defiantly not the time. I'll WAIT a little longer.' So, years go by, FINALLY you tell her! She doesn't exactly act thrilled so you have to WAIT until she finally confesses that yes, she loves you too. But she says, 'hold on'—and this is paraphrasing, of course—she says, 'hold on, loving you isn't very convenient for me right now. But how 'bout you WAIT a little longer for me and I'll love you then.' so you wait...and wait...and wait...finally you ask her to marry you...and now Shades...I want you to take a guess. What do you think she is going to ask you to do?"

Shades looked as Joseph from beneath low eyebrows, "wait" he answered.

Joseph nodded his head, knowing that he had made his point. That nod turned into a slow shake of the head, "A man can only wait so long. And I...?" Joseph paused, "...I, for one, and tired of waiting."

With that, Joseph turned and was walking out the door when Shades called after him, "But isn't Clarisse worth it, Joe? Isn't she worth the wait?"

Joseph froze in the doorway, panting slightly from his speech. His eyes searched the floor beneath him, as if it held all of his answers. Turning his head enough so that Shades could see the side of his face, Joseph said, "Two hours ago I would have said 'yes'."

Shades watched with unbelieving eyes and an open mouth as his friend disappeared from sight. Did Joseph ACTUALLY just say those words? Life, as Shades knew it, had just flipped upside down.

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There you go guys! I hope it was long enough for you all. haha. I would really like to know what you all thought about this chapter. It was very hard to write and I would greatly value your comments about it.

Please Review!

--Monker


	16. Coping with Tales

Sorry it took so long. But here is the next chapter...

Deep breath in...Deep breath out...here we go...

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Shades strode quickly down the hallway. Each palace staff member that he passed he stopped to ask if they had seen Charlotte anywhere. He passed Sandra, one of the palace chefs, and asked her if she had any idea where Charlotte was. The young, but talented chef nodded and pointed towards the door that led into Her Royal Majesty's office. Shades expressed his thanks then hurried to the door. Remembering that Her Majesty may be on the other side, Shade's knocked swiftly on the door. He heard the voice of the woman he was seeking coming from behind the door inviting him to enter...so he did.

He entered and took a quick look around. Seeing that it was only him and Charlotte in the room, Shades quietly shut the door and then spoke. "Charlotte, I just heard the most disturbing thing of my life!" he said.

Charlotte, who was adding numerous papers into files behind the desk, turned to face the man who spoke to her. "What happened?" she asked.

Shades walked closer to the desk, "Joe just told me that he doesn't love Her Majesty anymore."

"What?" Charlotte gasped.

Shades nodded, "It's true!" he said, "He asked her to marry him and she turned him down. Now he says that he is tired of waiting for her and that he is giving up!"

Charlotte grabbed her forehead and took a seat in the chair behind the desk. "Oh no..."

Shades continued, "He talked about how long he has waited for her and how hard it has been so far. Then he said that he didn't want to wait for her any more. I asked him didn't he think Clarisse was worth the wait, and he said 'no'."

"...He said that?"

Shades nodded.

"...Oh dear. Have you talked to Clarisse?" Charlotte asked.

"No, I think you need to."

Charlotte nodded thoughtfully. Charlotte was Clarisse's friend; if Clarisse should listen to anyone...it should be a friend.

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"Thank you, ladies. That should be all for tonight."

Pricilla and Olivia bowed their heads. Olivia stepped forward and collected the tea set and then turned to walk out of the room. They closed the door to the bedroom behind them and then walked through the rest of Her Majesty's quarters.

"Her Majesty was acting strangely tonight." Olivia whispered.

"_Shh_..." Pricilla hushed.

"But do you deny it?" Olivia asked, even quieter than before.

"Of course not...I've never really seen her that...down before."

Olivia thought for a moment, "I wonder what happened to her."

"Well don't." Pricilla said.

"What?"

"Don't wonder. It's not our place to wonder. But if you ask me...she was acting like a woman who was heartbroken. And the only one with access to that heart is Joseph" Pricilla whispered.

Olivia was dumbfounded, "Are you saying that you think Joseph hurt her?"

Pricilla didn't say anything; she just raised her eyebrows and hiked her shoulders. Olivia thought about it as she opened the door to leave Her Majesty's suite. Both Pricilla and Olivia were surprised to find Charlotte standing behind the door, about to knock.

"Oh, hello Charlotte," said Pricilla.

"Hello ladies, is Her Majesty still awake?"

"Yes, but I don't think that she wants to be disturbed."

Charlotte entered the rooms anyway. "This is important; she'll find time for this."

Both Olivia and Pricilla stood at the door and watched as Charlotte walked over to the bedroom door and knocked quietly. Once Charlotte disappeared through the door Olivia turned to Pricilla and said, "We should go."

Pricilla nodded and they both left the suite and closed the door quietly behind them.

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Clarisse was pulling back the covers and about to slip beneath the sheets when she heard her door open. She turned around and saw as Charlotte walked closer to her.

"Charlotte, what are you doing here? Do you know what time it is?" Clarisse asked, taking a seat on the bed.

Charlotte glanced over at the clock; it read 12:04 in the morning. Charlotte was quiet for a long time; she didn't exactly know how to say it. She clasped her hands in front of her and looked at the ground.

"Charlotte, are you alright?" Clarisse asked, dipping her head to try to meet Charlotte's gaze.

Charlotte brought her head up, "I was just about to ask you the same thing."

Now it was Clarisse's turn to act shy. She lowered her head and stared at her fingernails. Before Clarisse knew it, Charlotte had come and was sitting next to her on the bed. Clarisse looked up just as Charlotte began to speak.

"I heard what happened between you and Joe."

Clarisse's breath caught, and then she looked down at her hands again glumly, "I suppose the whole palace knows by now" she said.

"No, I didn't mean I had heard it FROM someone...I mean...I heard it."

Clarisse looked up at Charlotte with sad eyes, "Oh..." she said, sounding much like a sad child who just discovered Santa Clause wasn't real.

Both women were silent for a good while. Charlotte was about to speak when she saw a tear fall from her friend's eye and make an audible splash on the fluffy comforter bellow.

Clarisse spoke, "I don't know what to do. I fear that this is the biggest mistake I have ever made, and there's been quite a few, believe me. I've lost him, Charlotte. I've lost him for good."

"How do you know that? You can't be sure." Charlotte said hopefully.

"Yes, yes I can. I'm sure," Clarisse continued to cry softly, "He wouldn't take me back...not now...not after what I did to him."

"Sure he will. Clarisse, he loves you."

"No..." Clarisse said sadly "no he doesn't. He pulled away from me when I went to comfort him...a man in love would never do that. He doesn't love me."

Charlotte sighed and looked down. "Why did you say 'no'?" she asked.

Clarisse's and Charlotte's gazes locked. A fresh wave of tears came flooding out from Clarisse's eyes as she said, "Because I didn't have a choice!"

Charlotte looked confused.

"I am not a free woman, Charlotte. In fact, I am far from it! I don't have the freedom to do whatever I wish with whomever I wish whenever I wish it! I can only to do what this country will allow me to do. I am bound by invisible chains! The one time the words 'shut up' slipped through my lips I nearly had the entire room of parliament members on the floor, passed out from shock. The reason? Because the country doesn't allow me to say certain things. If I were to take a stroll in sneakers as opposed to my usual dress shoes, you can be sure that it would be on the front page the following morning with a headline like, 'Queen letting herself go!', because they only allow me to wear certain things. And they would certainly not allow me to marry Joseph, or any other man for that matter because they like it when I'm alone. They feel that it is important to see that I am honoring Rupert's memory by remaining single. Though it's terribly unfair, that's the way things are, and I can't change it."

Charlotte was quiet for a long time, eyebrows low in thought. Finally she spoke, "I think I have determined your problem."

"My problem?" Clarisse asked.

"Yes, I think that you are so worried about pleasing the public that you are completely oblivious to the pain it is causing yourself and the one you love."

Clarisse didn't like this. She thought that she was going to be comforted through this conversation, not lectured. "How DARE you say I do not recognize my own pain? Believe me when I say that I know the pain all too well! And I kno-"

For the first time in her life, Charlotte interrupted her Queen as she was speaking, "Sure you know it, but you disregard it anyway! You know the pain you are experiencing and you KNOW that Joseph is suffering through the exact same brutal, agonizing, murdering pain! And you sit idly by and do NOTHING! All because you are afraid of what people might think? So let me ask you something, Clarisse. Where are the people now?"

Clarisse was so shocked by all the things her assistant was saying to her and the tone in which she was saying them, that she was not able to speak a reply, but that was ok because Charlotte didn't really want one.

Charlotte continued, "Are they here? Do they see you sitting on your bed, crying your eyes out right now? No, of course not. They don't know, Clarisse. They don't understand. They haven't watched you and Joseph come down this long road. So why are you listening to them when they do not understand the situation like you do. Have they experienced the things you have experienced with Joseph? Do they know what it's like to love him the way you do? No...They haven't a clue. So why are you ignoring your own conscious and you own heart to listen to the advice of people who have never met you and have never met him and cannot grasp the love that the two of you have for each other? That hardly seems right...wouldn't you agree?"

Clarisse's face was dumbfounded. No one had ever spoken to her that way before. She didn't know exactly how to react. She defiantly needed some time to think about everything Charlotte had just said.

"Charlotte? ...could you...give me a moment...please?" Clarisse spoke slowly.

Charlotte bowed her head and rose from the bed, "Yes, Your Majesty."

Charlotte walked over to door but before she left, she turned around and said, "Think about it?"

Clarisse nodded slowly but didn't look up, "...no doubt I will."

And with that, Charlotte left.

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The next morning, as she walked down the hallway towards her office, Clarisse rubbed her eyes sleepily. She did not get much sleep last night, and the sleep that she DID manage to get was not at all close to being peaceful. The things that her assistant told her last night had kept Clarisse's mind racing through most of the night. And she did not remember the nightmares that she had during her sleep; all she knew is that she awoke in tears...so perhaps it was best that she did not remember them.

When Clarisse reached her office she opened the door and froze. Joseph, who had been looking out the window, turned around to look at her when he heard the door open.

"Joseph...I...I'm glad you're here. I wanted to speak you. I've done a lot of thinking."

Joseph closed his eyes and held up his hand as though to silence her, "Please, You Majesty...I just came to drop these off" Joseph showed a bright yellow folder then held it out for Clarisse to take.

Clarisse reached into her breast pocket and retrieved her reading glasses, "What is it?" she asked, as she placed the glasses upon her face and opened the file.

"They are my resignation forms. I need you to sign them" Joseph stated.

Clarisse jerked her head up to look at Joseph, "You're leaving? Why?" she begged.

Joseph's jaw clenched and he looked at the ground, "Please Clarisse, don't make this harder than it already is."

Clarisse watched him for a while, silently questioning if he REALLY wanted to do this. The look on his face told her that, yes...he had thought about it and this is what he wanted to do. Clarisse sighed, who was she to deny him this, after she had already denied him so much? But she had to know...she needed a reason.

"I will do as you ask and sign these" she said, "All I ask is that you give me a reason."

He stared at her for a while.

"Please Joseph...I need to know" Clarisse begged quietly.

Joseph blinked a few times and nodded his head slightly in understanding. He said, "On a personal level...it would be too painful to stay. But professionally...I believe I've earned a peaceful retirement."

Clarisse ignored the tear that slipped down her cheek, and hoped that he would too. She nodded and said softly, "Yes, you have." Then she turned and carried the folder with her to her desk. While her back was turned to him, Clarisse reached up to dry that single no-good tear.

Joseph was not fooled, however. He could only hope she knew that he didn't enjoy hurting her like this. Goodness knows this was not what he wanted.

Clarisse sat at her desk and reached for her pen. She looked at the papers in front of her. "Where am I supposed to sign?" she asked blankly.

Joseph gulped, and then walked around to her side of the desk. Now standing beside her, Joseph reached down and pointed to a spot on the paper. "Here..."

Clarisse's flourish signature was soon on the paper where Joseph was pointing.

Joseph flipped the page, "...here..." pointing to a different spot.

Again, Clarisse signed.

Joseph hesitated. After this last signature it would all be final. His dream job would be over, and he would be officially walking out of Clarisse's life. He gulped hard, "...and here" he said.

Clarisse didn't want to sign the spot where Joseph was pointing, it was the last thing on earth she wanted to do; but her hand and wrist betrayed her anyway by marking the paper with her name. Once the last 'i' was dotted, Clarisse set the pen down on the desk, picked up the paper to give it one last look, and then turned to hand it to Joseph. "Here you go" she said, offering the papers to him.

He nodded as he took the papers. He held them in both hands and hung his head low as he stared at them. He tried to say "thank you" but the words just wouldn't come out, so instead, he simply turned and was walking out the door when Clarisse's words stopped him.

"You're not going to miss Mia's wedding, are you?" she was staring steadily at the dark mahogany that was her desk.

Joseph turned to look at her; his voice was husked and quiet as he said, "No...I'll be there."

"And her coronation..." at this point Clarisse looked up, "...you'll be there for that...wont you?"

Joe nodded, "Of course."

Clarisse nodded back, "Good," then she turned and stared at her desk again.

Joseph was still nodding absently. His breath was a little shaky as he pinched his lips together and searched around the room with his eyes, as though he was searching for something else to say. When he couldn't think of anything, he bowed towards her (though she was still not looking) and then he slipped quietly out the door.

Once Clarisse heard the soft click of the door sliding into the closed position, she dropped her face to her hands and began to weep softly.

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I know it isn't the longest chapter I have ever written, but it will have to do. I just really wanted to get it posted soon. I hope you liked it though!

Author's Note (for Misha): Did you notice that I used the "invisible chains" metaphor again? Ten points if you can name what other chapter from what other story I used it in!!

Please review!


	17. I thought you'd never ask

Here is the next chapter!

Deep breath in...Deep breath out...here we go

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"Where's Grandma?" Mia asked frantically.

"I assure you Your Highness, Her Majesty will be here the moment she is able. Right now, she is tending to some last minute details" Charlotte calmed as she helped the Princess into her wedding gown.

Mia sighed as she slid her arms into the lace sleeves, "I know. I'm sorry ladies."

"It's alright, Your Highness" said Charlotte; while Mia's ladies maids, Brigitte and Brigitta, simply nodded with understanding.

Mia shifted the clothing on her shoulders as Brigitta and Brigitte fastened the clasps in the back of the gown. "I'm just a little scared," she admitted quietly, staring Charlotte in the eye.

Charlotte nodded empathetically, "I know" she said. Then she walked over to Mia and lightly grabbed the sides of the younger woman's face. "I am so proud of you. You are SO brave for doing this. Daily you grow more and more like you Grandmother...and your Father."

Mia's eyes looked sad, but her mouth bore a genuine smile. She thanked Charlotte with a much needed hug. It was stressing her out not to have her Grandma there, but Charlotte was doing an excellent couching job.

The four women got back to work after that. Charlotte stepped away into the bathroom briefly. While she was away, Mia's ladies maids began to coach also.

"Remember not to walk too fast." said Brigitte.

"Yes, and don't lose your footing in those heals!" chimed Brigitta.

Mia nodded and blinked at the ceiling as she tried to convert everything mentioned to memory.

"Be mindful of the steps as you descend the stage" Brigitte warned.

Brigitta wagged a finger at the bride as she said, "And remember, the most important thing is DON'T under ANY circumstance-"

"Gum!" Charlotte interrupted as she held some toilet paper under Mia's chin.

"Never do what!?" Mia asked, scared.

"GUM!" Charlotte demanded.

Mia spit out her gum and Charlotte went to throw it away.

"NEVER DO WHAT!?" Mia begged again.

Just then there was a small knock at the door. Instead of answering the Princess, Brigitta went to answer the door.

Mia could not see the visitor, but she knew who it was simply by the familiar voice as it asked "Is she decent?"

"Why, yes Mr. Joseph. Come on in. But only for a moment I'm afraid. We have make-up to do." Brigitta exclaimed as she opened the door wider to grant Joe access into the room.

"Yes, of course" he spoke softly. "I just wanted to see the bride before her big day."

Mia hiked up her dress and waddled over to Joe, Brigitte followed hunched behind Mia in order to secure the last few clasps on Mia's dress. Joe grinned as the young woman he loved like a daughter drew nearer. She practically fell into his embrace, grateful for the comfort it provided. Joseph chuckled slightly as he rubbed soothing circles into Mia's back. When they drew apart he placed a single kiss to her cheek, then drew back to admire her.

"Dear Lord, Mia...you look stunning. Truly remarkable!" he said, as he beamed with pride.

"Joe," she said, eyes unsure "I'm really scared."

Joe closed his eyes and rubbed her upper arms lightly to sooth her, "I know," he nodded. "Mia, I love you. I will support what ever decision you make. If you want to go through with this...I'll be there, right with you. And if you want to back down, I'm telling you now...that's ok. No one's forcing you to do this. This is your life, no one else's...you have the right to live it."

Tears were building up in her eyes. She looked down at the floor and nodded.

Joseph tilted her face up to meet him again, "You have to think, Mia. What is you heart telling you? What do you WANT?"

Mia thought about it briefly. Then Joseph watched in amazement as the young woman before him transformed into the spitting image of her Grandmother and said, "I want to do this for my country. I will NOT fail my father, or Grandmother...or the people of Genovia. They deserve to be justly ruled...and right now, I am the only person that can give that to them. If that means marrying Andrew, then so be it. It's a small price to pay for the welfare of my people."

Joseph bowed his head slightly, sighed, and shook his head in wonder. When his head rose again, mere seconds later, he had a proud grin on his face and there were wet streaks down his cheeks. "A great queen" he spoke hoarsely, "a GREAT queen indeed!" Then he pulled her in for a firm kiss to the head (being mindful of the styled hairdo).

Mia smiled sweetly, "Oh, Joe! You're crying!" she said as she dried the tears from his cheek.

Joseph stepped back and cleared the rest of the tears before saying, "I'm just so proud of you. Genovia has no clue how fortunate they are to be getting you. You truly have the potential to be the greatest queen Genovia has ever had...and I believe that you will be."

Mia was taken aback by the complement. Better than Grandma? Impossible! She would never be the queen that her Grandmother was...but she would definitely try. "Thank you, Joe" she said at last, "Thank you for everything."

"Always, my queen." He bowed and placed a kiss to her hand. Then with a wink and a smile, he turned and exited to room.

Mia turned back to face the three other women in the room. Each of them was drying their own tears. After a few sniffs, everyone got back to business. "Your Highness, come sit right over here." Brigitte said.

Mia obeyed. Soon Brigitta was kneeling in front of Mia, placing the high heeled shoes on the Princess's feet. Brigitte was making a few last minute detailing to Mia's blush as she spoke.

"I wonder what he meant by 'always'."

"What do you mean 'you wonder'? He meant always, silly." said Brigitta.

"Well, yes. But he can't REALLY mean that because he isn't staying at the palace much longer."

"Oh yeah," said Brigitte. "I forgot."

"Y-you forgot? You forgot what?" Mia asked, startled by what her ladies maids were saying.

"Oh...nothing." The ladies maids realized their slip of the tongue and meant to rectify it. But they already had the undivided attention and alert from both Mia AND Charlotte.

"No, no! What have you heard?" Charlotte demanded.

"Well...Mr. Joseph is retiring" Brigitte finally said.

Both uninformed women gasped in unison. "What?!" asked Mia.

"He turned in his papers the other morning and Her Majesty signed them. He's due to leave sometime before the end of the month" Brigitta explained.

Mia sat as still as the dead, she could NOT believe it. She turned desperately to look at Charlotte who bore a much similar expression. "Is this true?" She asked the older woman.

Charlotte, with mouth open and eye brows still high from the shock, hiked her shoulders and said, "It must be...the maids know everything."

The two ladies maids suppressed giggles at Charlotte's statement. Mia held Charlotte's gaze firmly. Neither of them believed, or wanted to believe it. _'But that WOULD explain why Clarisse has been acting so strangely.'_ Charlotte thought.

"It can't really be over, can it? ...just like that?" Mia asked.

Charlotte just shook her head unknowingly.

Mia continued, "After all that they've come through? After they've made it so far? Grandma just signed and sent him on his way?"

Charlotte again just shook her head, unable to say anything. The turn of events was completely unexpected.

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"Ok gentlemen!" Joseph said, stepping into the security room and forcing his hands together in one loud clap to gain the attention of everyone in the room. The entire security squad looked up from what they were doing. Those who were in further parts of the room came closer to the center for the security briefing. "Listen up. I know we hit on most of this stuff during yesterday's briefing, but I also know that some of us were not present for it."

At this point all of the men in the room turned their heads to look at Jerry. When he looked up and saw everyone staring at him he threw up his hands in an innocent gesture. "What?" he exclaimed, "I had to miss the briefing! Paige had the baby last night. I couldn't just leave her!"

"Sure," Dean teased, "that's what they all say."

The men in the room laughed.

"What did she have?" Joe asked quietly.

"Baby girl!" Jerry beamed, "Eight pounds, eleven ounces."

Joe smiled and patted the new father on the shoulder. Then he said louder for the whole room to hear, "Ok boys, let's get serious now. We've all had a look at the guest list...it's nothing new. With the exception of a few family friends of the bride's side, it's mostly diplomats and political advisers all the way. No one gets into the building without having a name on the guest list. If there is any question about this I want who ever is on post at the door to call me immediately before letting them in. We have six teams of news reporters that have to show ID before entering and they will be stationed in the wedding hall during the ceremony; aside from that, no one gets in with a camera of any kind or any audio recording equipment. I want an eye and an ear on everyone and everyTHING that come through those doors. Wedding gifts are to be scanned and approved by two men before they get anywhere near the wedding party. Alright...you boys know you posts. Let me hear them."

One by one the entire security force started stating their name and where they were to be stationed. It was a long and grueling process, but it was thorough; and Joe always liked thorough. Once everyone had stated their posts Joseph finished by saying, "And I will be stationed by the front entrance of the wedding hall." After that, Joe went over a few more details before dismissing the men to their posts. Those who wanted to were invited to stay for the regular prayer that the event would go smoothly. Joe stayed.

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Well, so far so good. Guests were starting to pour in and find their seating among the church pews. Joseph, who had just finished his rounds to each of the security posts, now took his place with Shades by the hall's main entrance. Joseph knew that, with the doors open, if he turned his head he would be able to see Clarisse as she greeted each guest who passed her way. But Joseph didn't let himself look. He had to practice not looking...which was not going to be easy. His eyes scanned the crowd as his brain raced over every security detail...searching for something he may have missed. When he could think of nothing, Joseph relaxed, but only on the inside. His exterior still looked as alert as ever. His senses pricked when he heard the extremely distasteful sound of the Vise Count's voice coming from the other room. Ignoring his own will power not to look, Joseph turned his head and saw as the Vise Count kissed Clarisse's hand. As far as Joseph was concerned, Mabrey held that hand to his lips for three seconds TOO long.

Shades, who was watching his friend closely, could later swear that he saw Joseph's nose snarl like an angry dog. Shades took one quick glance through the doorway and understood Joe's look of rage. As the Vice Count entered, he regarded Joe with a quick menacing look and was about to stride by when Joseph stepped in front of him, blocking his path. Joseph leaned his head closer and said something to the Vice Count in a low voice. The larger man listened, then jerked his head back and retorted with an angry red face, "Sir, believe me when I say that I understand th-"

"Wrong!" Joseph interrupted firmly. "You will never understand...not like I do." Then Joseph leaned in and said something else. When both men pulled apart, Mabrey's face was no longer red, but it was drained of all color. He looked like he had seen a ghost as his terrified eyes searched Joe's face. Shades was also studying his friend's face, his expression was one that Shades had never seen before. Joe was shooting a look at the Vice Count that seemed to be daring Mabrey to respond. A look that said, "Come on, tough guy. Take me on and know what it feels like to be brave." Instead though, the Vice Count cleared his throat, straitened his vest and tried to look noble as he strode down the isle to the front of the hall. He looked more like a bad puppy with his tail between his legs than he did a respected nobleman. Once he took his seat the Vice Count turned in his seat to look back at Joe. When he saw that the Head of Security was still glaring at him, Mabrey quickly averted his gaze to the front of the room.

With a sigh (or what it a huff?) Joseph stepped back to his rightful post without as much as a glance in Clarisse's direction.

"What was that about?" Shades dared to ask.

Joe just turned and looked at his friend, and then disregarded the question entirely.

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"Ahh, Madame Farstine. I am so pleased you could make it." Clarisse greeted with a smile.

The woman smiled and clasped the Queen's hand in a light shake. "Well thank you for the invitation, Your Majesty. I would not dream of missing Princess Amelia's wedding."

Clarisse smiled again and gestured towards the hall's entrance where the Madame could be shown a seat. The other woman soon disappeared and Clarisse was watching for the next guest to arrive when Charlotte tapped her on the shoulder.

"We're all ready to begin, Your Majesty" the assistant informed.

Clarisse felt a rush of surprise shoot up her spine and she held her heart lightly. She had been preparing for this moment for a long time, but now that it was here, she didn't feel ready for it at all.

"Alright, thank you Charlotte." she said, then prepared to enter the hall with Mia's mother and step-father.

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"Go for kickoff." Upon hearing the code phrase Joseph turned slightly and nodded to Shades who quickly left in order to get the ring barer and carry the child to the front of the hall. Joseph bowed his head and spoke softly into the microphone. "Roger that. Kicking off." Then he nodded to the door men who both opened the double doors and the bride's maids and their escorts entered the room, followed by Mia's best friend, Lilly.

"Hey, Joe."

Joseph was a little surprised to hear his name being called from what he thought was a closed door. But once he realized that it was just Mia he understood and waited for her to continue.

"I just wanted to say, before I do this..."

He waited, eye's never leaving the front of the hall.

"...I'm sorry you're retiring."

Joseph's eyebrows shot up. He was unaware that that was common knowledge. He thought that Clarisse could have kept it a secret. But he couldn't say that he was angry about it...sooner or later the whole palace would know about it. Never the less, he wondered how Mia had heard.

"Who told you that?" he wanted to know.

Mia hesitated briefly, she didn't want to get anyone in trouble...but she couldn't lie to Joe. "The maids know everything" she whispered.

Joseph nodded understandingly. Indeed they did know everything. With all of their gossip sessions, the maids knew both everything going on in the palace that was of verity as well as things of fiction that were supposedly going on in the palace. Joseph thought about Clarisse for a moment and then inwardly sighed with grief.

"Well, the heart does things for reasons that reason cannot understand" Joe explained simply.

"You're preaching to the choir" Mia whimpered before closing the door lightly.

Joseph smirked sadly before knocking quietly on the newly shut door. "Princess?" he asked in a whisper.

"Yes?" same the girl's small reply.

"Then you should know that Nicholas did not set you up at the lake."

The Princess had snuck out to go on a midnight escapade with the Vice Count's nephew two nights ago. They had fallen asleep beneath a tree by the lake and when they awoke the next morning there was a news camera staring them in the face. It had been a devastating blow to Mia. Though Mia tried to hide it, Joseph could tell that she felt strongly for the young man. Every time the name Nicholas was mentioned, Joseph could see an unmistakable glint appear in the Princess's eye...and Joseph knew that glint well from his own experiences. So, to think that Nicholas would have led her on only to catch a disgraceful moment on camera just about broke Mia's heart. Despite his being related to Vice Count Marbery that would have been a low blow even for Nicholas to make. So, if Mia truly cared about this boy, then Joseph felt it was his duty to inform her about what he knew.

He heard Mia's breath catch slightly before she asked, "You sure?"

Joseph slightly hiked his shoulders before repeating, "The maids know everything."

At that point Charlotte approached as said softly to Joseph, "We're ready when she is."

Joseph nodded to Charlotte and relayed the message to Mia. "Are you ready to do this?" he asked.

"I don't know," came her unsure reply. "Am I ready?"

"I've always had faith in you...so has Charlotte."

Charlotte nodded even though she did not hear the question, but it didn't mater because the Princess could not see her anyway.

"And so has your Grandmother" Joseph finished.

That reminded Mia. "About Grandma, Joe...I heard about what happened..."

Joseph closed his eyes and shook his head lightly. "Don't think about that now, Princess. It's not important. What's important right now is Genovia."

Mia nodded, gulped, and then said, "Tell them I'm ready."

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The congregation rose as Mia started her walk down the isle, and Clarisse watched anxiously from the front of the wedding hall. Oh how she prayed Mia would be alright! Clarisse sympathized with the girl. She knew what it was like to march down that mile long, lonely isle...towards someone that you didn't love...in order to uphold a duty that you didn't ask for. It was not an easy march. But Clarisse did it all those years ago, and now she watched as her granddaughter was doing it before her very eyes. Clarisse's stomach did a flip-flop. She still was not sure that she should be asking this of Mia. Clarisse had felt that it was so unfair for her parents to make her marry Rupert against her will. She swore to herself back then that she would never ask such a thing of HER children. Yet here she was...fifty-some-odd years later...asking it of Mia. Clarisse almost felt ashamed of herself for letting it get this far.

The crowed began to murmur as Mia slowed down and then came to a complete stop in the middle of the isle.

"Is this part of the plan?" Helen, Mia's mother, asked.

Clarisse shook her head, "No."

The crowed listened carefully as Mia cleared her throat and said, "I'm going to need a minute or two." Then she gave the bouquet to a nearby wedding guest and then started to run out of the room.

Clarisse rose from her seat and in no time was with Charlotte by the wedding hall's main entrance. "Please be seated, there will just be a momentary interlude. Thank you" Clarisse announced awkwardly to the crowd.

"Do we rush after her?" Charlotte asked hurriedly.

"We never rush...we hasten.You'll take care of this." Clarisse informed her assistant before quickly following Mia's path out the door.

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Codes and alerts were being spoken into the radio left and right as security members were trying to figure out where the Princess had run off to. Joseph ignored the calls as he followed Clarisse through the palace and out the entrance foyer. He caught up pretty quickly and, once outside, took his stance by the front stairs. He kept one eye on Clarisse and Mia while the other scanned the crowd that had gathered out in front of the palace.

"I lost Joseph. Where'd he go?" asked Shades on the radio.

"Anyone got a twenty on Joseph?" came Dean's voice.

Joseph clued them in by saying simply, "I'm with the Eagle and Sparrow."

He could hear Clarisse and Mia talking...but he couldn't make out the words. All he knew was that around the same time, Mia and Clarisse glanced in his direction. He wondered why they were talking about him...it seemed like a rather odd subject considering the circumstances. He wanted so badly to go over there and comfort Mia. But he couldn't...not with those hundred people with cameras watching. Oh well...he would have to leave it to Clarisse. But he wasn't worried, Clarisse was incredibly tender when it came to her granddaughter...he knew Mia was in good, capable hands. Almost as quickly as they had come out, Mia and Clarisse began their journey back inside.

As they passed Joe, he gave them both a questioning look. Clarisse averted her gaze. But Mia raised her hand to pat Joe on the chest and said, "I'll be fine, Joe."

When they reached the wedding hall, Clarisse and Joseph stayed by the door and watched as Mia bolted back up the isle to speak quietly with Andrew. After the couple exchanged a few unknown words, Andrew took a seat next to his mother, and Mia stepped up to the pulpit and began to speak...

"Welcome. A few moments ago I realized the only reason I was getting married was because of a law...and that didn't seem like a good enough reason. So...I won't be getting married."

The volume level in the room skyrocketed as surprised murmurs broke lose. Joseph was not as surprised as some of the other people in the room. He merely smiled and nodded his head approvingly. And he saw that Clarisse was doing the same thing.

Mia saw them from the pulpit and smiled, sure of herself for the first time in what felt like a very long time. She continued, "My grandmother has ruled without a man at her side for quite some time, and...I think she rocks at it! So as the granddaughter of Queen Clarisse and King Rupert..."

The entire room joined together in saying, "King Rupert. May he rest in peace!"

Then Mia continued, "I ask the members of parliament to think about your daughters, your nieces, and sisters, and granddaughters, and ask yourselves: would you force them to do what you're trying to make me do?"

Then she looked back and made eye contact with Joe. She smiled and repeated what he had said to her a few hours ago as she was getting ready. "I believe that I will be a great Queen."

Joseph smiled back at her and nodded his head in support.

"I understand Genovia to be a land that combines the beauty of the past with all the best hopes of the future. I feel in my heart and soul that I CAN rule Genovia. I- I love Genovia. Do you think I would be up here in a wedding dress if I DIDN'T? I stand here, ready to take my place as your Queen." Then Mia looked the Vise Count dead in the eye and added firmly, "_without_ a husband."

Every woman in the room and even some of the men too, clapped their hands together in agreement.

The wonderful moment did not last long, however. Vice Count Mabrey stood and turned around to face the congregation. He then proceeded to contaminate the air with one of his ridiculous accusing speeches. Joseph noticed how the Vice Count refused to make eye contact with him. But that didn't keep Joseph from staring down that snake with everything he had. Joseph felt helpless. He was not one to draw attention to himself at public gatherings...and this was about as public as it could get. But Joseph still did not like standing idly by while this mule of a man took advantage of Mia this way. Joseph had just nearly gained the courage to step forward and say something...or in the least, escort the mule out of the room, when he stopped because a new voice was then heard coming from the side of the room. It was Nicholas. He stated rather plainly that he refused to be King of Genovia. Then the young Lord explained that Mia had a vision for Genovia, one that would lead it into the twenty-first century. And he ended his little speak by saying, "And besides, just think how lovely she will look on our postage stamp."

Joe had to keep from smiling at the look on the Vise Count's face. "Lovely on a postage stamp!?" the mule bellowed. "YOU would look lovely on a postage stamp!"

Nicholas just looked one more time at Mia then turned and started walking away.

"Don't you walk away from me, sir! You have a duty, sir, to Genovia" Mabrey left his pew and took down several flower arrangements as he did so. Then he continued up the isle all the while he tried to explain his nephew's actions to the crowd. "H-he's, uh...he is very distressed."

As the mule came closer, Joseph put a protective arm in front Clarisse and urged her to take a step back for safety, and Joseph placed himself in between her and the mad man. The Vice Count, to his credit remembered the conversation he had had with Joseph earlier; so he gave a hurried bow to Clarisse and then, to be sure he did not get in to trouble later, bowed quickly to Joseph before heading out the door for his nephew.

"The door." Clarisse said into Joseph's ear.

Joseph gestured to the doormen, "Shut the doors, quickly."

Once the doors were closed Joseph turned and shared an exasperated look with Clarisse. Then she quietly laughed it off and he did the same. Then Joseph spoke softly into his microphone and ordered Dean and Sinatra to find the Vice Count and remove him from the property.

And then everyone's attention was redirected to the front of the room were Mia then made a motion that the marriage law would be permanently abolished as it applied to present and future queens of Genovia. Clarisse and Joseph stood in silence as one by one members of parliament stood with a firm "aye" from each.

"The ayes have it!" Prime Minister Motaz announced.

Clarisse gasped with joy then spun around and smiled proudly at Joseph. He smiled back and nodded his head. Then Clarisse looked back up to the front of the room where she saw Mia and Sebastian laughing over a joke that Lord Palamore had said.

When things calmed down a little Charlotte approached Clarisse and held out her ear piece. "Your Majesty? The Princess would like a word." The assistant explained, smiling.

Clarisse was a little surprised. She looked up at Mia and pointed to the ear piece. Mia nodded. "Oh...umm" Clarisse said as she fumbled with the listening device and held it to her ear..

"Grandma?"

Clarisse stepped forward to show that she was listening.

The Princess went on, "Just because I didn't get my fairy-tale ending...doesn't mean you shouldn't."

Clarisse's jaw dropped, "Oh! uhh..." she turned to Charlotte and asked, "Did you hear that?"

The assistant merely shook her head and assured, "Not if you didn't want me to." She decided that it would probably be best if she didn't tell the Queen that not only had SHE heard it, but the entire security team did as well.

"Oh, Charlotte." Clarisse laughed nervously. She ran her hands down the front of her pretty dress and breathed an awkward sigh. Then the straitened her jacket and said, "Well..." she licked her lips with a grin and glanced one more time at Mia who had a huge smile on her face. "Joseph?" Clarisse asked.

Within seconds, Joseph was standing before Clarisse. "Your Majesty." He greeted formally with a bow.

"Dear Joseph."

Joe tilted his head slightly and cocked an eyebrow. What was she getting at?

She continued, "Am I too late...to ask you to except my hand in marriage?"

Joseph's eyebrows sprung towards the ceiling. He had hoped that that was what Mia's little radio communication had meant, but he hadn't dared to let himself believe it. He was too afraid that he would be wrong. He inwardly leapt for joy. This was too good to be true! But on the outside, Joseph merely cleared his throat and said, "Well, I thought you'd never ask." Clarisse smiled at him and then he turned towards his friend. "Shades?" he said, and then he handed his hat over to the younger man and placed his ear piece inside. "You're in charge now" he said, "Good luck with Lionel."

Shades nodded.

Joseph stepped back to Clarisse's side and held out his arm. "I'm going to a wedding."

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It all seemed surreal. An hour and a half ago, he was watching Mia walk down the isle. Now, Joseph stood next to Clarisse as they greeted THEIR wedding guests as they entered the reception hall. Joseph did not know ninety-eight percent of the people that wanted to shake his hand, but they all seemed to know his name. Clarisse, knowing that Joseph was lost, would quietly whisper the names of the couples as they approached.

"Lord and Lady Hamormien" Clarisse informed in a whisper as another pair approached them.

"Your Majesty, congratulations!" The large man said, bowing low and kissing Clarisse's hand. "And you Joseph, Sir...you are one lucky man."

Joseph laughed politely with the other man, then he glanced at Clarisse with a small, but noticeable smile. "I would have to agree with you there, Lord Hamormien" Joseph said, eyes never leaving Clarisse's smile.

Just as quickly as they had come, the Hamormiens had left and were replaced by another guest. That process seemed to go on forever. The guests seemed to be an endless tide. Until, finally...the last smile was faked, the last "glad you could make it" was said, the last hand was shook, and Clarisse and Joseph were able to sit down at last.

Joseph breathed a sigh or relief as he sat down at their assigned table. "I do not know how you do it, my dear. That was grueling."

Mia laughed, "What, Joe? Not used to being so social?"

"I never had to be before! I jumped from lurking in the shadows—a very comfortable place, mind you—to center stage within moments." Joseph said, he was comfortable here, around this small round table with people he knew. He continued, "An hour ago, these people would have never even thought to offer their hand to me...but now...I don't know."

Sebastian laughed heartedly. "I'm afraid that when you agreed to marry our queen you forfeited all rights for solitude" the Prime Minister said with chuckle.

"Too true!" Clarisse chimed.

"Get used to it Joe," Sebastian said, pointing a fork in Joseph's direction, "from this point on, there will always be at least one person with you at all times" he finished, sending a shake of his fork in Clarisse's direction.

Joseph took hold of Clarisse's hand that was on the table and looked over at her, "I don't think I will mind the company."

She grinned at him. The conversation continued but everyone at the table made a note not to direct any of the topics towards newly married husband and wife...Clarisse and Joseph were in their own little world, and no one would even dream of bringing them out of that world...they deserved to be there.

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there you go guys, I hope you liked it. The next chapter is going to be a short wrap-up and then that's it...its done sniffs. It's ok...we'll get through this together.

Leave a review if you'd like!

--Monker


	18. Reminiscing

Ok guys, once again...I am sorry for taking so long to update. At first I was not exactly sure how I should wrap this whole story up. I didn't really know what I should put in this last chapter. But I finally decided on what I wanted to use as content for my last chapter, but then it took a little while to write it all out. But anyway, I wish not to keep my wonderful readers waiting any longer. So...

(For the last time) Deep breath in...Deep breath out...Here we go...!

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_TWO YEARS LATER_

Clarisse set down her book and breathed in deeply before she took a sip of her newly made tea. She set the teacup daintily down on its saucer and returned it to its place on the end-table next to the couch. She took the glasses off of her nose and stretched her arms up towards the sky, moaning happily at the relief it caused her back muscles. She was reclining on her favorite couch, "chilling" as her granddaughter would call it. Indeed...life was good. She had never felt more at peace than she had over the past two years. Her country was now comfortable under the new rein of Queen Amelia, and that Queen was now married to Lord Nicholas and soon expecting a child. And of course...Clarisse was happy to be standing along the sidelines with her husband, Joseph, because truly it was Joseph that made the past two years so enjoyable. Clarisse smiled at the thought. Oh, how she loved him! Relinquishing her throne was not easy. Even though she knew that Genovia would be in good hands with Mia, Clarisse still had a hard time with closing that particular door from her past. But Joseph made it easier.

_Clarisse ignored the sound of the door opening as she paced back and forth in the large dressing room. She had asked the flock of women who were helping her get ready for the coronation to excuse her for a moment...and that "moment" had lasted over half an hour._

"_You know, if you keep pacing like that then the permanent hole in the carpeting will not look at all attractive" he said from the doorway._

_Clarisse stopped pacing and turned to look at him. "Oh Joseph," she cried helplessly, "what am I to do?" _

_Joseph hiked his shoulders a bit and then fully entered the room, allowing the door to shut behind him. "You might want to consider buying a rather large rug."_

_Clarisse let out a laugh despite her nerves. If laughter was the best medicine, then Joseph was the world's most effective doctor. "Oh Joseph, you can always make me laugh. Tell me...do you have a joke for every occasion?" She had to keep from smiling as he stared at the space above her head and actually considered the question._

"_I don't think I have one for 'groundhog's day'" he said finally._

_She chuckled and allowed herself to be wrapped in his arms for a much needed hug._

"_How are you?" he asked after a short while._

"_I'm scared to death" she admitted. _

"_Why?"_

_With her forehead she could feel the low vibration in his throat every time he spoke, and it soothed her. "I'm afraid to give them up."_

"_You're people?" asked Joseph._

_Clarisse nodded against his collarbone. "I've been taking care of them for so long now...I mean, I knew that this day would come. I just...it almost feels like when you hear those stories about little ones who find a stray dog and nurse it back to health, only to have the dog's real owners come and take him away. I feel like one of those children who are having their dog taken away. And it scares me."_

"_Darling, the country will be in good hands...you know that. Mia is going to make a fine Queen." Joseph said, "But in order for her to prove that to the country...and herself, you have to step aside to give her the chance. She loves these people...she WILL take care of them, I know it...and so do you"_

_Clarisse nodded. Yes, she DID know it. She sniffed a little. Why was she crying? This should be a happy milestone to pass. "Thank you Joseph, what would I do without you?"_

_Joe smiled and kissed his wife's forehead. "Come," he said, "we have a young lady to queen."_

Clarisse smiled at the memory. Really though, what WOULD she do without him. Clarisse didn't even like to think about it. In his own way, Joseph was a lifeline for Clarisse. For as long as she had known him, he had never failed to be there for her in times of trouble. Every time she needed him, Joseph always seemed to be right around the corner with a hanky...or a poodle puppy.

_It was the night before the third year anniversary of Rupert's death, and Clarisse stood alone on one of the palace's many balconies. She ignored her own rule about perfect posture and allowed herself to slump over, resting her elbows on the banister. She was dreading tomorrow. She, of course, was expected to make several appearances at this or that throughout the day. And along the way, each Genovian flag that flew at half mass would remind her of the best friend that she had lost those few years ago. Tomorrow would be terrible. _

_A figure approached from behind her, but she did not notice; nor would she care if she knew who it was. His presence was not known to her until he came into her peripheral vision, reflecting her position as he too leaned up against the banister. She turned her head to look at him, but he did not make eye contact with her, nor did he say anything. He just stared off into the distance, clearly thinking about something. She accepted his presence willingly. Her Head of Security always knew how to be a comfort to her, even if it meant saying what no one else had the courage to say, or saying nothing at all. _

_So the two of them stood there, in the still darkness, for at least ten minutes. Then Joseph's words broke the silence. _

"_When I was a boy..." he began._

_Clarisse turned to look at her friend, waiting for him to continue._

_Joseph turned and glanced at Clarisse just long enough to read her expression. "I know it's hard to believe. But at one point, I actually WAS a young boy" Joseph joked._

"_No, I didn't mean it like that. I'm sorry if that's how it seemed." _

_Joseph laughed softly and waved the topic away with a disregarding swipe of the hand. _

"_Go on, Joseph...please?" Clarisse asked softly._

_He nodded and looked back off into the distance before continuing. "When I was a boy, and...I would get sick or get disappointed for some reason...my father would take me to the grocery store. He would stand me right in front of the candy shelf. I will never forget how massive that candy shelf was to me. To call it a shelf would be an understatement. It was like a candy WALL!" Joseph chuckled to himself, "Anyway, he would point to the shelf and say 'Go ahead, Joey...pick one'."_

_Clarisse smiled at the look on her friend's face. It was clear he was enjoying his stroll down memory lane. _

_Joseph continued, "And every time, growing up, when I would get the flu or something like that, and my father would say, 'come on, Joey. Let's go for a ride'...I always knew that what that really meant..." he turned and smiled broadly at Clarisse, "...was the candy shelf." _

_Clarisse laughed softly and then turned to look at the grounds below again. Once she realized that Joseph's story was finished, she decided to ask, "Joseph, why did you tell me this?"_

_Joseph tilted his head a little as though he was thinking about it. "I guess...I just sort of felt like you were going through one of those times."_

_There was a pause, and Clarisse accepted his answer. Then out of no where, Joseph added, "And...I think...I can see the candy shelf pulling in now."_

_Clarisse, confused at hearing this, looked closely at the grounds below. She saw a large white van pulling up onto the palace's driveway. When she turned to look questioningly at Joseph, he was not there. She stood up strait and turned around. Joseph was holding the door open for her._

"_Come on, Your Majesty...let's have a look at that candy."_

_When Clarisse and Joseph walked out of the palace, they were greeted by a doorman that stood next to the large white van. "Good evening, Your Majesty" the young man greeted._

"_Good evening" Clarisse said politely. _

_The doorman looked at Joseph and raised his eyebrows questioningly. Clarisse also looked at Joseph. He closed his eyes and nodded his consent. Then the doorman hid a smile while he turned to open the large double doors to the white van. As soon as the doors were fully opened, two uniformed ladies stepped out with a dog leash in each hand, and at the end of each leash was a French poodle puppy._

_Clarisse gasped and her hands came up to cover her mouth in shock. She felt Joseph as he leaned in closer and said quietly, "Pick one."_

As though on cue, the door to Clarisse's suite opened to reveal Joseph as he came in late for the fifth night in a row. He turned to face the door as he quietly shut it and then leaned his forehead against the cool wood.

He sighed, "I am so exhausted."

Clarisse chuckled a little, "You know, dear one, I believe that you are the only retired man in the world that still ends the day just as exhausted as he did when he was NOT retired."

Joseph chuckled as he walked over to the couch where his wife was seated. "It's only funny because it's true." He laid down on the couch and rested his head on Clarisse's lap.

Clarisse started to rub her hands over her husband's head. Joseph moaned as he felt his stress being massaged away. "Joseph?"

"hmmm" was his weak reply.

"What has been keeping you so busy this time?" she asked.

Joseph opened his eyes too look up at Clarisse, "The palace is having a security upgrade...did I not already tell you this?"

"No, you did. I was just wondering why Scott wasn't doing all of these things. It is HIS job now, after all."

"Shades, darling, he likes to be referred to as Shades" Joe corrected.

"'Shades', 'Scott' it's the same person. My question still has yet to be answered though."

Joe sighed, "He's got enough on his plate as it is. I've been in his shoes, I know how it can get...I just want to cut him a break, and sometimes I wish someone would have cut me one all those years ago. He's a good man. The least I can do for him is oversee the installation of the new security gear. You wouldn't believe the kind of luxuries he's getting, Clarisse! New cameras, new microphones, tinted glass for specific windows (you can see out...but no one can see in), and...get this...he has an x-ray machine that scans every vehicle that comes through the gate! When I first started here, all we had was a snap shot of the license plate. Now he can tell you, if there are any weapons on board, what's in the trunk...he can even tell you in which pocket the driver is carrying his wallet! You should have seen Shades as he was showing me all the new stuff he could do..." Joseph chuckled, "he was as giddy as a schoolboy! Of course I have to admit, I myself was getting a little excited over it all as well."

Clarisse smiled, she would never understand why all of his security toys excited Joseph so much. But then again, she guessed that every man had their own thing that really tickled them. For some men it was cars, other men sports...but for her husband...it was vehicle x-ray machines and unbelievingly small cameras. Clarisse chuckled.

Joseph continued, "But anyway darling, we think that tomorrow will be the last day of installation and after that...I'm all yours."

"Glad to hear it" she said, and then leaned down to give her husband a light kiss.

"So what have you been up to?"

"I've been waiting for you to get home. And I've been reading a little bit too."

"Really? What have you been reading?"

Clarisse sighed and looked at the book, "Well...I found this book on the shelf, and I remembered how good you said it was once. So I started reading it."

"What book is it?" Joseph asked. Clarisse handed him the book and Joseph started laughing. The cover read Another Grape on the Vine, this book held fond memories for him.

"It's terrible!" Clarisse said.

"I know..." He said as he continued to laugh.

"Honestly, Joseph. I don't know what you see in this book. The author spent a page and a half describing, in GRAVE detail, the contents of a characters refrigerator!" Clarisse complained.

Joseph still laughed, "I know...it's a terrible book."

"Then why did you say that you liked it?"

"I lied, my dear. I'm sorry. I have never liked that book and suspect that I never will."

"Oh...good." Clarisse seemed to feel relieved that she was not the only one who hated the book.

"So..." Joseph said, tossing the book lightly to the floor. "What else have you been doing?"

Clarisse thought about it momentarily. "Nothing really...just thinking about the past."

"Oh?"

"Do you remember the night you gave me Maurice?"

Joseph smiled widely. He turned his head to look at the now fully grown poodle that slept happily by the unlit fireplace. "I'm glad you chose him. He was my personal favorite out of the bunch. He was the only one that didn't try to chew on my finger as I was picking him up."

"I'm glad I chose him too. He's a fine animal. Did I ever truly thank you for him?"

Joseph chuckled softly as he rose to a sitting position next to Clarisse. "Only about a hundred times" he said, as he leaned against the armrest and Clarisse fell to rest on his chest.

Then things went silent. Joseph stared thoughtfully at a large painting that hung on the opposite side of the room. Joseph had thought that his wife had drifted off to sleep until he heard her ask, "Did you see Mia at all today? Aside from breakfast, I mean."

"Yes I did, I stopped by hers and Nicholas's rooms on my way here. She told me to tell you goodnight and that she loves you" Joseph reported.

Clarisse smiled, "I love that girl. And I am looking so forward to her due date. It will do the palace some good to have the little pitter patter of feet running up and down the halls again."

Joseph smiled faintly and merely nodded his head in agreement.

"I tell you Joseph, it's been far too long since we had some little ones in the palace."

"And what a child it will be. Mia and Nicholas make a fine couple; their child will be beautiful, no doubt."

"Joseph...do you remember when we first heard about the pregnancy?"

Joseph grinned, "Yes I do."

"_Nicholas, where is that wife of yours?" Joseph asked over his shoulder as he readied the DVD player. "Was she not supposed to be here quite awhile ago?"_

"_She said she was running a tad late but she would be here as soon as she could make it" Nicholas replied from his place on the couch in the viewing room of Mia's and his suite._

"_Give her time Joseph, it can get rather frantic being queen, trust me" said Clarisse, also seated on the couch._

"_Well the DVD is ready," Joseph said, grabbing the remote and heading over to the couch to sit next to his wife. _

_Right before he made contact with the comfortable cushions Clarisse asked him, "Darling, would you mind poring me a cup of the tea Olivia just brought in?"_

_Joseph did as requested and, again was about to sit when Clarisse asked, "Oh, and perhaps a blanket as well? Movies are best when you can cuddle up with a blanket during them. Besides, I don't like horror films and need something to cover my eyes during the scary parts."_

"_Clarisse, this isn't a horror film. It's a cunning mystery. It's not scary" Joseph informed._

"_Even still...a blanket please?" Clarisse pleaded with a bat of the eyes._

_Joseph tapped her on the nose before turning to find her a blanket. _

"_Hey, Joe!" Nicholas called, "You want to grab me a drink too? As long as you're up, I mean?"_

_When Joseph turned to look at the younger man, Nicholas was batting his eyes at him just as Clarisse had done. Joseph picked up a nearby pillow and threw it at the boy. Nicholas caught it with a laugh. As Joseph went to the opposite side of the room to fetch a blanket and soda, Nicholas and Clarisse exchanged winks and then proceeded to make request after request just as Joseph was about to sit down. And each time, he would glare at them both then fulfill what was asked of him. The last time, however, neither Clarisse nor Nicholas had to make a request because there was a noise at the door that stole Joseph's attention. It sounded like someone was trying to open the door with their foot but kept failing. Joseph turned and looked at his two companions who showed no signs of moving to answer the door. "Oh please don't get up, let ME get it!" Joseph said with an exaggerated sigh._

_He walked over to the door and opened it. Mia walked in holding an armful of papers as well as a coat around one arm and an envelope in her mouth, "Thanks, Joe!" Mia said threw clenched teeth._

_Just then Charlotte quickly followed Mia into the room saying, "Your Majesty, please let me carry some of that for you."_

"_No, no...I got it. You guys go ahead and start the movie. I'll be there in a second." Mia said as she hurried towards the bathroom. But as she walked across the room, Mia's foot got caught up in the rug beneath her feet and the Queen went tumbling to the ground. Files and documents went flying through the air and then drifted swiftly to the ground. _

"_Oh dear!" said Charlotte and she and Joseph bent to help clean up the mess._

_As Joseph reached for Mia's fallen coat a small rectangular box caught his eye. He picked it up and read the label, "a pregnancy test?" he questioned once he realized what he was holding._

_Charlotte gasped as Clarisse and Nicholas both stood and stared at Mia. Joseph too was staring at Mia surprised. Mia stood and rolled her eyes, "A little louder Joe! I don't think the Prime Minister heard you in Mritz!" she said as she snatched the box out of Joe's hands. Joe just stood frozen and continued to look at Mia._

_Nicholas stood with an open mouth as he stared at his wife, "You think you're pregnant?" he asked quietly._

_Joseph's, Clarisse's and Charlotte's eyes all jumped from Nicholas to Mia as they all awaited her answer. Mia nodded softly with a shrug, "I think I might be, yeah. There's no way to be sure until..." Mie waved to small box lightly in the air._

"_Take your time, dear" Clarisse said._

_Then Mia disappeared behind the bathroom door and there was silence in the viewing room. Joseph's eyes were locked on the bathroom door until he turned look at the three people who stood behind him. He looked at Clarisse whose mouth was open slightly in surprised awe. She held out her hands to him. Joseph walked closer to her, grabbed her hands, then pulled her into a hug._

"_Oh..." she breathed simply._

_Joseph sent a kiss to Clarisse's head and then turned to look at Nicholas. The young Lord was half sitting on the armrest of the couch, his mouth slightly open, and his unblinking eyes were staring fixedly at the intricately designed rug beneath him. Joseph reached out a hand and clasped Nicholas on the shoulder. _

_Nicholas seamed dazed at the contact as he brought his eyes up to meat Joe's. "What do I do?" he asked._

_Joe smirked slightly, "You wait."_

_What was probably only a few minutes seemed like a year to the four people who waited for Mia to reappear from the bathroom. Joseph and Nicholas both found themselves pacing back and forth. Charlotte moved to Clarisse's side for some comfort. With one hand, Clarisse clasped her ex-assistant's hand, while with the other, Clarisse held her own heart. After what seemed to be a lifetime, Mia finally appeared in the doorway again. Nicholas immediately stopped pacing and was at Mia's side in an instant. Mia had tears in her eyes as she merely looked at her husband and nodded softly. Nicholas was frozen for a moment, letting that nod and its meaning sink in. Finally he asked quietly, "a baby?"_

_Mia nodded again with a smile._

"_A baby?" he asked again, a bit louder._

"_Uhhu!" Mia said excitedly._

"_A BABY!" Nicholas yelled as he sent a swift kiss to Mia's cheek then lifted her into the air in a spinning hug._

_Once Nicholas's head got the better of him, he realized that it was probably not a good idea to spin a newly pregnant woman around in the air. He set his wife down and apologized multiple times for his actions. "Really Mia, you should be sitting in your condition."_

"_Honey, I'm fine" Mia said, pushing Nicholas lightly aside so that her grandmother could come and hug her._

_As both weeping women exchanged a very long, non-spinning hug, Joseph walked up to Nicholas and gave him a hardy handshake. All thoughts about a cunning mystery movie had fled the minds of everyone present._

"That was a good day" Joseph said finally after his flashback had ended.

Clarisse nodded, "Yes it was."

Then things went silent. Neither one felt the need to say anything after that. So they both merely sat in silence for a long while. Joseph's head was leaning back on a large pillow that was behind him, his eyes studying the inside of his eyelids; while Clarisse's gaze was fixed on their joined hands. She compared the difference in skin tone; his was slightly darker than hers. A few light freckles were sprinkled on her forearm whereas his arm was covered with a black sleeve held together at the cuffs my two equally as black buttons.

"Joseph?" Clarisse squeaked, not wanting to wake him if he had fallen asleep.

Joseph's eyes opened and he breathed in deeply, trying to keep himself awake to answer what ever question his wife wanted to ask. "Yes?" he said.

"How did we ever end up here, like this?"

Joseph merely cocked an eyebrow and shifted slightly so that he could look his wife in the eye.

Clarisse continued, "I mean...ours is rather an unlikely story, isn't it?"

Joseph nodded softly, "Yes, yes it is" he said thoughtfully.

"What did we ever do to deserve this?" Clarisse asked as she nuzzled back into her cozy position of laying her head upon Joseph's chest.

"Well...I know that, for as far as I'm concerned, I never did a thing to deserve you. And you do not deserve me either, you deserve someone far better. But being married to you the past two years has taught me something very interesting about love that I would have never known otherwise."

Clarisse smiled, "Oh? And what would that be?"

"That sometimes the most powerful example of love is when a person is willing to accept someone else, who is completely inferior, as a spouse, for no other reason except that of love. To say that I know why you love me would be lying. I don't have a clue why you picked me, but what I DO know...is that, if for some odd reason you decided to keep loving me, then I wont to anything to stop you. Because the past two years have been the happiest of my life" Joseph said. Then as if to seal his statement, he dropped a simple kiss down to his wife who lay quietly on his chest, listening to his words thoughtfully. When he pulled away, Clarisse started to grin.

"I do love you Joseph" she said.

Joseph grinned back, "And I love you" he said, "...with all my heart."

Clarisse leaned forward and kissed him right on the tip of the nose. Then finally, she said...with a smile that lit the room...

"I know."

THE END

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Well...that's it guys. I hope you enjoyed my story. I fear that I have dragged this story out for longer than it needed to take. My posts have come VERY slowly and for that I'm sorry. So what ever readers have stuck around with this little story all the way to the end, I thank you for reading and pray that you enjoyed what you read. Feel free to leave me a review...just for old time's sake (_wink wink_) lol.

For those of you who care, during the third and final flashback scene, the movie that I had in mind for the group to be preparing to watch is a film titled "Sleuth" (made in 1942) which stars Michael Cain and Sir Laurence Olivier.

I also thought that I would have a bit of fun while bringing Another Grape on the Vine back just for one last time. I guess I just thought that, since I started this story by having JOSEPH read the book, it might be interesting to end the story by having CLARISSE read the book. So, in a way, it felt like we made a full circle. And I liked how it turned out, so I kept it in.

Anyway...I guess that's it. God bless you all...and thanks again for reading (and for those of you who have been reviewing as well...I also thank you for doing that. Feedback is really what gives me the courage to continue a story. So thank you to all my wonderful reviewers!!! You guys are the best!)!

--Monker


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